Drew Thornton
Ministry of Magic
Auror-in-Training
I didn't do it and you can't prove otherwise...
Posts: 14,114
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Post by Drew Thornton on Nov 3, 2008 21:50:00 GMT -5
After spending seven years at Hogwarts and enjoying that certain amount of status that came with being the oldest of the group, it was a bit of an adjustment for Drew to suddenly find himself as the new guy, the young kid that no one took very seriously. Okay, so he wasn't usually taken very seriously at school, but now it was even less. He tried his best to at least look the part: hair cut, clean shaven, business robes, properly knotted tie. But sometimes things didn't go very well and he knew he was coming off as a goof-off kid. Sometimes, it couldn't be helped.
This was one of those times.
Drew hadn't had the pleasure of Bogey's presence at work yet. The over-excited owl had delivered a letter from Felicity but now seemingly refused to leave. After flitting around the tall trainee's head for a good ten minutes, the small bird decided to investigate the Ministry, every so often taking a break from his frantic flying to perch on one of the statues or worse, another person's head. Drew was left trying to catch the ball of feathers like a seeker grabbing for that elusive snitch. It was that or let the blasted bird annoy the whole office.
"Bogey!" he hissed, chasing after the bird, his robes flapping behind him as he ran and jumped to make another swipe at the owl. Bogey seemed to like the game, slowing down just enough to tease Drew, only to flit away again leaving the young Auror-to-be with nothing more than a few feathers.
{Cameron/open}
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Cameron Brooks
Ministry of Magic
Junior Assistant to the Minister
Posts: 18
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Post by Cameron Brooks on Nov 5, 2008 1:15:22 GMT -5
Cameron had just settled down with his files in the sunny atrium. It seemed like the best place to start his newest occupation. Oh yes, it was a great honour indeed. Being this close to the Minister of Magic... which was who?... was such an honour. But he couldn't help feeling a lump form in his throat when a slip of parchment, folded over, fell to the ground. It bore the joint crests of East Lothian House and Fife-St. Andrew's Academy of Magical Education. Within, he knew, was the handwritten thanks of all his East Lothian Scarleteers. He picked it up, grimacing at the shooting pain in his leg. Something caught his eye.
On the Quidditch Pitch, Cameron wouldn't have thought twice about whether this looked peculiar... any seeker sought a winged bird-like object (namely, the snitch), but never in an office environment had Cameron thought he'd experience a seeker seeking something similar to the snitch (namely, an actual bird), and on foot too! But such was this morning spectacle. Straightening himself, not without a grimace, Cameron watched the young man chase after the illusive bird. It was especially entertaining that the bird seemed to enjoy the taunt, slowing down at the moment which seemed most opportune for the capture, then zooming off again. Owls were meant to be symbols of wisdom... cunning? Cameron had always left that to snakes and foxes.
"Bogey!" The young man hissed, jumping to make the snatch, but only coming up with a fist-full of feathers. Cameron couldn't help it. He laughed. In his experiences, the battle between man and animal usually went, decisively, to animal.
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Drew Thornton
Ministry of Magic
Auror-in-Training
I didn't do it and you can't prove otherwise...
Posts: 14,114
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Post by Drew Thornton on Nov 6, 2008 1:09:07 GMT -5
Bogey excelled at the chasing game, teasing his owner by flying just out of reach and then zipping to the other end of the Atrium to annoy one of the secretaries from the fourth floor. The poor woman tried to shoo the little bird away with the stack of she was holding, only to lose her grip on them in the process. As the pages fluttered to the floor, Bogey gleefully dove through the mess, enjoying the chaos.
Drew ran over and apologized profusely, bending over to help the woman gather the papers. Bogey decided to take his favorite perch, on top of the tall trainee's head. He sat there for a moment, tugging at the short sandy hair, but as soon as Drew made a grab for the pest, the bird nipped his fingers and flew away. Drew apologized to the woman again before chasing after the owl again, thinking that if it hadn't been the fact that Bogey was annoying a lot of people with the game, Drew would have just ignored him.
The chase led to the center of the Atrium where Bogey decided to take a perch on the top of the fountain, picking the top of the Wizard's hat to take his break. As Drew slid to a stop at the edge, nearly toppling into the water, he tried to ignore the rolling eyes and grumbles the other Ministry employees were sending in his direction. There were a few people who were snickering at the spectacle and Drew turned towards one man and smiled sheepishly, adding a helpless shrug. "Too bad I wasn't a seeker in school," he tried, hoping he wasn't upsetting too many people with his stupid owl.
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Cameron Brooks
Ministry of Magic
Junior Assistant to the Minister
Posts: 18
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Post by Cameron Brooks on Nov 8, 2008 13:24:18 GMT -5
Cameron watched the young man nearly topple into the fountain, atop which the owl "Bogey" chose to land. Around them, other wizened Employees grunted, disapproving of this early morning disturbance, but in truth, Cam didn't find it disturbing. There was nothing more that he'd want to do at this moment in time than watch life participate in life. An owl leading another younger employee to some disastrous end (namely falling into the fountain) was the source of life, and great entertainment at that. But around the Ministry, Cam had noticed in all his years there, life didn't penetrate the halls and chambers. For example, within the walls of the Ministry, life was put to the test. If one failed that test (namely committed some wrong-doing in the eyes of the Minister of Magic), the Ministry forever represented that place in which an individual lost his/her own life. But here, with this young man and his owl, it seemed life persisted.
"You must be new, then" Cameron said after the young man proclaimed: "Too bad I wasn't a seeker in school." Cam hobbled to his feet, using his flashy cane to make up for the lack of his right leg usage. He stuck out a hand to the young man. "I'm Cameron Brooks, Junior Assistant. Who might you be?" There were others around who snickered. Perhaps they found this funny also? Cameron knew he did; his grin proved it. But some people who worked in the Ministry - well, it was too soon to judge his peers so soon after returning to the job. And besides - wasn't it the surprising wisdom of his young Brother-In-Law that advised him to "be aware of everything you do, because someone is always watching you"?
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Drew Thornton
Ministry of Magic
Auror-in-Training
I didn't do it and you can't prove otherwise...
Posts: 14,114
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Post by Drew Thornton on Nov 12, 2008 1:37:11 GMT -5
"Thornton... Andrew Thornton," the younger man answered, taking the offered hand and giving it a firm shake. Hopefully, his crazy bird's behaviour wouldn't be held against him too much. "And I suppose I'm fairly new. I'm a first year Auror trainee. The hyperactive ball of feathers likes to pretend he's my owl... except he's in danger of becoming a pin cushion very soon." Drew shot a glare at the bird, but Bogey seemed not to notice.
"I actually just left Hogwarts last year," he continued, knowing there was no use trying to pretend otherwise. It was obvious he was still wet behind the ears. "Played beater on the Ravenclaw team, but nope, never seeker." He was babbling. Oh well. Another sign that he was just a kid.
Drew noticed the cane and wondered a little about it. It reminded him a little of the distinctive cane his buddy Hiro used, but of course that was for a different reason.
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Cameron Brooks
Ministry of Magic
Junior Assistant to the Minister
Posts: 18
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Post by Cameron Brooks on Nov 12, 2008 21:40:27 GMT -5
So the owl was destined to be a pin cushion? Cameron supposed that was a rather noble destiny for a pesky fowl. "I should think he'd make a good stuffed exhibition," Cam joked. "For kids to poke, and such. You know, return the favour?" He turned his brow up, whimsically, flashing a smile. "And, perhaps," he began, shifting his weight off the bad leg, "to keep him in one place? It's nice to meet you, Mr. Thornton."
"I actually just left Hogwarts last year. Played beater on the Ravenclaw team, but nope, never seeker." Cameron smiled at the mention of Hogwarts. He looked up at the bird. "Beautiful school, Hogwarts. My Brother-in-Law is a Hufflepuff student there. Fifth year." He returned his gaze to the same plane as Mr. Thornton's, though not looking directly at the boy. "He doesn't fancy Quidditch, I've gathered." And then he caught the young man looking at the cane, and he felt himself blush a little, moving back a little.
"AH. The cane?" Cam straightened up more so than he had been. He didn't want the young man to take him for disabled. He was merely... mobility hindered. "Yes. Terrible thing to drag around... but seeing as I can't use my right leg without it," he had that silly twinkle in his eye again, "I guess it's necessary."
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Drew Thornton
Ministry of Magic
Auror-in-Training
I didn't do it and you can't prove otherwise...
Posts: 14,114
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Post by Drew Thornton on Nov 13, 2008 0:50:09 GMT -5
Drew grinned easily before answering. "It's just Drew," he told the older man. He was well accustomed to being adressed by his last name since that was what the professors called him at school and how the senior Aurors and instructors refered to him now. He didn't think he needed such formality for this particular situation.
He hadn't meant to draw attention to the man's condition, but the cane had caught Drew's eye. "Sorry, if I offended. I didn't mean anything My best mate has one with a unique head on it and I was just noticing yours is all."
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Cameron Brooks
Ministry of Magic
Junior Assistant to the Minister
Posts: 18
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Post by Cameron Brooks on Nov 14, 2008 1:41:04 GMT -5
Cameron smiled, waving off the apology. "No need for apologies, Drew. It was an honourable injury," he said, the hint of fond memories underlying his words. "But I wouldn't want it to happen again in all honesty. And for what purpose did your mate need use of a cane?" He queried. For someone so young as Drew, it must've been something truly awful that forced a lad to use a cane. And yet, the allure of wielding one, especially if it was fanciful and looked posh, did withdraw much of the initial humiliation of requiring one.
Or so Cameron had justified. Perhaps the defect came with birth? That seemed an odd of unimaginable proportions. And, personally, Cameron would've liked to have a posh head for his cane. Maybe something in ivory? Black stick and an ivory head? That would quite chic, indeed. He'd look into it.
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Drew Thornton
Ministry of Magic
Auror-in-Training
I didn't do it and you can't prove otherwise...
Posts: 14,114
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Post by Drew Thornton on Nov 14, 2008 2:57:46 GMT -5
Honorable? The word peaked Drew's interest, but he thought it would be too forward to ask how the injury had happened, considering they had just met. No matter the cause, he was sure it wasn't one to be relived. Why you might not chose to go back and change the circumstances that brought it on, he didn't know anyone who really wanted to go through an injury the first time, much less a second.
"He's blind," Drew answered matter-of-factly. It might have sounded a little flippant, but Hiro was like a brother and the fact that he couldn't see was a part of Hiro as much as Drew's blue eyes were part of him. "He's got a couple of canes actually, but the really cool one has this awesome eagle on it. We were Ravenclaws, so it kind of worked for that."
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Cameron Brooks
Ministry of Magic
Junior Assistant to the Minister
Posts: 18
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Post by Cameron Brooks on Jan 22, 2009 22:48:13 GMT -5
Blind? What an interesting lifestyle to have! Every chance at taking the adversities of life and turning them into a personality seemed a decent usage of one's time to Cam. After all, he'd spent half his years at Fife-St. A's stuffing firsties into the various disappearing classrooms on the third floor of McAfee Hall, twice causing Howlers to be sent to him from their parents. So, causing adversity had been fun, but not wholly satisfying. Being born into adversity.... that was an entirely different cauldron of salamanders! While acquiring an adversarial disposition wasn't exactly the most adventurous. But what was all this introspective rubbish?
"Ravenclaw, eh?" A twinkle crept into Cameron's eyes. "Never been to Hogwarts, truthfully. Never really understood what merits warranted one being tossed into this house or that, really. Only thing ever to reach us at FSA was that Gryffindor was Potter's house and no good wizard or witch ever graduated from Slytherin house, though I can't imagine that's true anymore." It was so different at FSA. It wasn't what was in you that sorted you, it was where you were from. Berwick, Cameron's beloved house, sorted out any student from the continent or from Asia. Occasionally Australians and New Zealanders were accepted, but under harshest restrictions. Perthshire was exactly the opposite. They accepted anyone from outside of the United Kingdom. On occasion, someone from within the UK could be sorted to Perthshire, but it was not common. East Lothian didn't accept Africans or Middle Easterners, and when there was international conflict, East Lothian took partiality to whoever hailed from a non-USA supported nation. Eastbourne, Berwick's arch-rivals, accepted almost everyone, unless you were from North Africa, or qualified to be in Berwick. Most students in Eastbourne House were Aussies, Kiwis, Americans or Irish.
Not often were political lines crossed, though. Interscholastic exercises, such as the FSA Dueling Club or the FSA Quidditch Club, greased the rusty lines between nationalities and houses. But given the stories about Hogwarts, this didn't historically seem to be the case. He was curious, in short, to learn from a graduate what made Hogwarts Hogwarts. "So, I suppose I ought to be acquainted with the logistics of the school if I've got family attending. What's the qualifications for being in Hufflepuff?"
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Drew Thornton
Ministry of Magic
Auror-in-Training
I didn't do it and you can't prove otherwise...
Posts: 14,114
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Post by Drew Thornton on Jan 22, 2009 23:15:51 GMT -5
Drew had to give a small snort as Cameron spoke of the sorting process. While most believed in the divine power of the hat to look within and make the the decision as to where you were best suited, Drew had a theory that it wasn't all that complicated.
"Eh, I flat out asked to be in Ravenclaw and I've always thought it's more about what traits you hold in highest regard rather than what qualities you actually have at the moment," he said. Everyone knew the history of Gryffindor and Slytherin, a rivalry that went back to the school's founding and had continued for the most part through Potter's time. "It's actually that Slytherin consistantly spawned the highest number of wizards who went bad... but history has it's share of good guys who came from that house."
"It's really not qualifications at all," Drew said, thinking that made it sound like a test of sorts. Older kids often liked to tease the incoming first years about the rigors of sorting, but it was all about a hat and the kind of person you are. "Huffles value friendships and working as a team," he explained. "Fairness, hard work, and loyalty. That's what Huffles are all about. So who's your brother-in-law? Maybe I know him."
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Cameron Brooks
Ministry of Magic
Junior Assistant to the Minister
Posts: 18
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Post by Cameron Brooks on Jan 23, 2009 11:34:04 GMT -5
Value friendship, eh? Sounded a bit like Luke. Sure he valued friendship... and maybe he liked working as a team too? It was all so curious. What if Luke had taken the letter of acceptance to FSA? Maybe, it then occurred to Cameron, maybe he'd never been sent one! Musing as he did sometimes - especially when it came to musing about his old school - Cameron wondered which house would have taken Luke. He certainly qualified for all but Perthshire (since he was a citizen of the UK), so his options would've been great. A dark sort of nagging feeling made him wonder if it would be in Eastbourne that Luke would've been sorted. Not a terrible thing, being a Blue Knight, but not as valiant as being a Velveteer. He doubted Luke had enough pompousness to fit well into East Lothian... er... East LOATHE-ian as they often chanted at Inter-Scholastic Quidditch matches.
Then the question turned to him. Did this young man know Luke? Probably not. For all his friendliness and loyalty, and overall sense of honesty... Luke was incredibly bashful around people he didn't know. It didn't seem likely that these two nearly contradicting personalities would have meshed at any given point in the last five years. True, Cam had only been related to Luke for less than one year - less than half a year to be sure - but he'd known the boy for as many as two years - two and a half to be accurate - during the intimate courtship between Luke's sister and Cam's brother.
"Well now, I don't think you'd know him. I mean, it's possible, but doesn't strike me as likely." He offered in a tone that could have been taken for apologetic. "Lukas Torrington? Strike a bell?" But there were other things that might have made Luke stand out too. First of all, he wasn't pasty white like some of the other naturally British students around. His African birth and partial upbringing must've set him apart, instantly, from the fray - if not by his slightly tanned skin, then certainly by his queer vernacular. Calling swimming trunks "costumes" for one, beginning and ending conversations with "good day" and calling the infirmary the "sick hut", to mention a few oddities of speech, ought to have drawn some attention to him. And then he was also, in more shallow observations, not at all a bad-looking young man. Just a very quiet one, almost unimpressive at first glance, but very genuine and kind.
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Drew Thornton
Ministry of Magic
Auror-in-Training
I didn't do it and you can't prove otherwise...
Posts: 14,114
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Post by Drew Thornton on Jan 23, 2009 21:36:00 GMT -5
Drew mulled the name over a while before shaking his head. As a student, he had known a lot of kids, but every so often he came across a name or a face he didn't know. "Nope, sorry to say I don't think I ever met him," he answered, kind of wondering why Cameron hadn't thought it likely that Drew would know of him.
"So, where did you end up if not at Hogwarts?" Drew asked, knowing there were a number of good schools in Europe, and actually all over the world. He could have gone to a couple of different classes in the States, but ended up going to Hogwarts with his sister instead.
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Cameron Brooks
Ministry of Magic
Junior Assistant to the Minister
Posts: 18
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Post by Cameron Brooks on Feb 2, 2009 20:08:06 GMT -5
Cameron felt something like pride swell within.
"I went to Fife-St. Andrew's Academy in Fife. It's been primarily isolated from the world until lately." He began. True, FSA had been kept from the wizard world at large for most of its 150 years existence.
"Lately its trying to emerge into the world more than before because it's safer to treat many international students without the threat of segregation. But in my time it was pretty small... maybe not as small as some schools, but fairly small. I graduated from Berwick House as one of some 130 students in my house year. The houses are Berwick, Eastbourne, East Lothian and Perthshire. Only two wizards gave their names to the houses, though. Marcus Logellus Eastbourne and Helen Berwicke founded their houses and sent their children through the schools. Berwicke was an all girls school at the time, Eastbourne was its male counterpart, but they merged later to form the school as it is now."
Cameron hoped he wasn't boring Drew with this précised history.
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Drew Thornton
Ministry of Magic
Auror-in-Training
I didn't do it and you can't prove otherwise...
Posts: 14,114
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Post by Drew Thornton on Feb 5, 2009 2:19:08 GMT -5
He smiled back as the young man spoke of his school. While Drew didn't understand some of what Cameron was speaking of, what came through loud and clear was a sense of pride in his alma mater. That was something the once-and-always Ravenclaw could understand loud and clear.
"Never heard of it, but it sounds like it was a good school," Drew told him, kind of curious about the segregation comment, but putting it aside for the time being. "130 in your house year though? That sounds pretty big to me. We have way less than that at Hogwarts. We average about 50 per year and that's all four houses."
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