Post by D'rorah Philosophy on Jul 1, 2007 11:12:02 GMT -5
I should preface this by saying that it is based on another RP I participated in… Dee has come to Hogwart’s from America. She is pursuing her mastership in Defense Against the Dark Arts. She is what we call a Shadow Warrior and Harry is her anchor… that requires a lot more explanation, but I simply do not have the strength. Suffice it to say that they are married, Dee is also a rabbi, having completed her ordination through a seminary known as HUC. She’s a workaholic and speaks more languages than any human being rightfully should… I believe 350 at last count, some ancient and some modern. Because of their status as Shadow Warrior and anchor, they share a very strong mental and emotional connection with one another. It’s a thread I’ve been playing with another friend since… I suppose around February or so. If you’re interested, here’s the link. severelyseverus.forum5.com/index.php?mforum=severelyseverus
You can read through for background if you're so-inclined. The other player is on vacation, so I’ve been a bit bored. Also, close to the end, it will look as though I’ve been double, triple, even quadruple-posting… but actually, the other player had the site locked down to her and was e-mailing me her posts during the day when she was at work (yeah, I know, we’re terrible… anyway, it’s there if you want to read through it.)
Dee's Birthday- Chapter 1
Dee lay, slumbering peacefully in her bed, wrapped in Harry's arms. In a moment, it would be her favorite time of morning. She would awaken and lavish in Harry's protective embrace for a few moments before slipping out of bed carefully, taking care not to wake him. In these early hours of the morning, there were no problems (well, typically); there were no distractions, no interruptions. She always rose early simply for these few stolen moments of peaceful tranquility before the various distractions of everyday life intruded.
Most of her friends, her first close friends actually, merely thought her habit of rising early was purely an oddness associated with Dee's tendency toward workaholism. It was true, she did tend to push herself quite vigorously in her drive to learn and excel, but she considered moments such as these to be her reward for her hard work.
This morning, however, would be a bit different. Though her mind had paid no attention to the fact, it was indeed Dee's nineteenth birthday. Being a Friday, she typically would not have classes to teach; instead, her time would normally be spent attending to the various mundane tasks required by her position as an Assistant Professor at Hogwart's. There were papers to grade and memos to send, perhaps students to tutor. Then, if she was lucky, she would have time to work on the research for her graduate studies and would perhaps spend some of the afternoon with Alastor Moody, the temporary Defense Against Dark Arts professor for the Auror Academy. It all depended on time, a commodity which Dee often wished for more of each night as she made her way to bed... at a rather late hour, though she received repeated admonitions to get more sleep. She simply did not sleep much. She never had, though that was another oddness most tended to associate with her workaholism.
It was true, she had admitted it to herself often. Her father had raised her to be a workaholic. Even though her compatriots had difficulty understanding it, they had finally began to grudgingly accept it as simply part of the oddness that made Dee who she was and typically kept their concerns to themselves.
However, on this morning, Harry had decided to disrupt her schedule just a bit. He had long wondered how it was that Dee managed to rise so early without the aid of any sort of alarm and after a bit of surreptitious probing into her mind had finally figured out how to do it himself. The night before, he had gone to bed, willing his internal clock to wake him up early enough that he would catch Dee still asleep. As he opened his eyes, it seemed to have worked. Sure enough, when he turned his head towards Dee, he could see that she was still peacefully sleeping. He allowed himself a moment to gaze at her, taking in the contrast of her features as she slept peacefully, her expression relaxed and open… though somehow, still serious. He smiled a bit at that; even in slumber, it appeared she was very business-like.
He waited until only a moment before she would normally awaken before gently kissing her awake. She responded almost immediately, wrapping her arms around him, though she was not yet fully awake. “Deedee…” he whispered her name softly into her ear. She woke, opening her eyes slowly. “Good morning, sunshine,” he greeted with an almost teasing smile.
“Harry? Did I oversleep?” she murmured, gazing up into his brilliant green eyes, the very eyes that had caught her attention when they had first met.
“No, I woke up early to surprise you. Good morning,” he replied before pulling her close and kissing her passionately. He slowly kissed his way across her neck and up to her ear. “Happy birthday,” he whispered as he nipped at her earlobe. He could feel the desire building within her… certainly, frigidity was not among Dee’s faults; though neglect at times when she was working particularly hard was sometimes an issue. Behind the desire, he sensed a momentary flicker of confusion. “You forgot your birthday again, didn’t you?” he asked.
“It had not crossed my mind,” she admitted, “my schedule is rather full today.”
“No, it isn’t. I spoke with Professor Snape and Moody. You don’t have anything you have to do today. We’re taking the weekend for us,” he replied. She started to protest, but he kissed her deeply, leaving her too breathless to speak.
“But Harry, I,” she found herself once again silenced, cut off by his kiss. Finally, she abandoned any attempt to change his mind, instead giving-in to the need she felt flooding through herself.
Finally, a couple hours later, they lay, luxuriating in the embrace of each other’s arms. “We’re going to a small village in Mauritania, Africa… it’s a group of desert nomads who’ve decided to begin a village. They’re building a small hospital and a school and need all the help they can get,” explained Harry. “I thought you would enjoy it.”
Dee smiled. Indeed, she preferred not to simply be idle, as Harry had long ago figured out. The arrangements were perfect for her… a chance for the two of them to do something together as a team, but still get her away from work. “Have I told you lately how remarkable you are, Mister Potter?” she asked as she leaned over and kissed his cheek.
Harry smiled. “C’mon, let’s get out of bed and pack a small bag to take with us. We shouldn’t need much.”
They were up, showered, and had packed a kit with medical supplies within the hour. “Oh, good morning Professor,” greeted Dee as she stopped into the office to gather a few items for her medical kit from her desk.
“D’rorah,” he inclined his head slightly in greeting. “I trust you and Mr. Potter will be careful on this excursion?”
“Of course Professor.”
“Hey Deedee, you ready yet?” asked Harry, coming into the office through the library. “Oh, good morning Professor,” he added. “Thanks for you help.”
“Just make certain you are both careful,” he admonished sternly before returning to his paperwork.
Harry turned to Dee. “You’re wearing that?” he asked, eyeing her long, white peasant skirt and long-sleeved white blouse. It seemed the only acknowledgement in her dress that they were headed to a desert area was that she was wearing a pair of sturdy sandals, rather than her usual boots. In her hand, she held a large piece of fabric. “You’ll pass out from the heat.”
“It is quite obvious you have spent no time in the desert,” she teased, kissing his cheek. “Come, we should see to your attire before you leave. T-shirts and jeans will prove painfully uncomfortable… and you will need some sort of head-covering.” Taking him by the hand, she pulled him back through the library into their quarters and began pulling clothing from the bureau as he watched silently.
“I’m not wearing that, it looks like a dress,” he said with a smile.
“It is a caftan, and if you insist on wearing slacks, you will at least need to change into a lighter fabric… though I assure you, you will be much more comfortable in the clothes I have chosen,” she replied.
By the time they set out, Harry had changed into light cotton slacks and a loose, long-sleeved shirt much like the one Dee wore. Upon his feet were a similar pair of sturdy sandals.
“Morning Harry, Dee,” greeted Ron as they were making there way out of the castle. “You guys going somewhere?”
“Africa,” replied Dee.
“Africa? What are you doing there?” asked Ron, donning his usual look of slight bewilderment.
“Helping set up a new village for a tribe of desert nomads,” replied Harry. “It’s Dee’s birthday present.”
“I didn’t know it was your birthday. Happy birthday Dee,” replied Ron. “Though, that’s the weirdest present I’ve ever heard of. Well, you two have fun. I’m gonna get to breakfast.”
“Bye Ron! See you on Monday!” called Harry as he and Dee headed out into the courtyard.
Once they were away from the school, Harry put his arm around Dee’s waist and kissed her cheek. It was a beautiful February day and was rather chilly. “We should have thought to bring coats for the walk to Hogsmeade,” remarked Dee.
Harry tightened his arm around her waist. “I’m not warm enough for you?” he teased.
The walk to Hogsmeade was fairly uneventful and the day was beautiful. Dee had taken on the unaccustomed habit of smiling, and doing so fairly frequently as they made their way through the village and down to the platform of Hogsmeade Station. Travel bags in hand, the couple disapparated, feeling that all too-familiar pull before reappearing moments later in Mauritania.
It was a typical desert morning. One could feel the last vestiges of the night chill fading from the air as the sun rose overhead, illuminating a brilliant expanse of sand underneath a nearly cloudless azure sky. Dee’s skin prickled a bit as it adapted to the sudden change in weather.
”Blimey, it’s hot here,” remarked Harry. He was quite certain he would be sweating profusely had there been any humidity whatsoever in the air. ”I guess you were right about the clothes.”
”How far is the walk to the village?” asked Dee, noting that it seemed the dunes stretched as far as her eyes could see. It seemed that the one thing Harry had taken a firm grasp of was the loathing of this particular tribe of magic; he had certainly apparated them far enough away that no one would notice their odd arrival… though they would almost certainly think it odd to see that two people had crossed the desert seemingly on foot.
”Have a bit of faith, he teased. ”Sam arranged for a pair of camels with a friend of his nearby. I how weird it would look for the two of us to just walk into the village. Sure enough, as he spoke, a trio of camels appeared over the crest of the dune before them, on adorned with a rider who was tall and lean. His weathered, olive skin and long white robes gave him the look of a desert chieftan.
“Salaam!” he called to the, his voice booming and jovial. “The two of you look as though you could use a ride!” his voice carried across the desert sands as clearly as a bell.
Dee smiled and raised a hand in greeting. ”Na’am! Anta lateef!”(Yes, you’re very kind!) she called back to him, matching the dialect she detected in his accent. The man smiled and urged the camels into a bit faster gait as Harry and Dee began making their way towards him. When they had finally come closer, the man dismounted from his camel with the swift, casual grace of one who spent much time traveling through the desert by camel.
”I am Omran Qutuz,” he greeted in rapid-fire Arabic. ”And you must be D’rorah Philosophy. Sam speaks highly of you, young woman.”
Harry watched silently, doing his best to follow the conversation through Dee’s mind as she chattered back in Arabic. ”Sam is biased. He believes me to be the very plane the heavens rest upon… I try to convince him otherwise, but you are aware of how insistent he can be.”
Omran nodded. ”He sent news of your father as well, peace be upon him,” he paused, ”He was a great man and a champion for peace between the divided peoples of our world… his loss is felt deeply by those who shared his mission.”
Dee inclined her head in acknowledgement. ”Thank you for your kind words. I hope one day to be able to say that I have been half of what he was.” She smiled and continued. ”Allow me to introduce my husband, Harry.”
“Ah yes, Harry Potter. This is a name known among the magical among us even here in the midst of the desert,” replied Omran, his hazel eyes sparkling in the desert sun. His eyes shifted to Harry and then back to Dee. ”It is good you are married on this trip, D’rorah. The tribe you are working with has a very fundamentalist attitude towards women. Indeed, I am a bit surprised they are willing to accept your help at all. You will require an escort at all times while you are working.” His smile quivered for a moment. ”It will be good for the women to have a woman around who knows a bit of medical aid though… currently the only one in the village with any medical training is a man who for reasons of so-called propriety chooses to delay treatment of their illnesses because he is afraid to see them unveiled. I am sorry to say D’rorah, it will be necessary for you to cover your face while you are there. The villagers follow their fundamentalist chief as though he were a prophet of Allah himself.”
Dee nodded. ”I have visited the Bedouin society before, Omran. I had a feeling I would encounter a rather fundamentalist attitude during this journey. I have no qualms with complying with the strictures of their faith.”
”Truly your father’s daughter… well then, let us be on our way,” he replied, gesturing to the camels he had brought with them.
Omran and Dee approached their camels, who kneeled obediently before Omran and Dee swiftly mounted. Harry watched closely, intending to mimic their movements. He had grown accustomed to the horses kept stabled at Hogwart’s, but the camels were much larger… and he had no idea how to make his kneel… it seemed to stare at him indifferently until Omran called out in sharp Arabic. Finally, the great beast sank to his knees and Harry clambered up onto its back, momentarily thrown off-balance as the camel made its way back to its feet. With that, they were off on their journey through the desert, Dee smiling at surroundings which claimed a home somewhere deep within her genetic structure and Harry marveling at the dunes and the heat.
You can read through for background if you're so-inclined. The other player is on vacation, so I’ve been a bit bored. Also, close to the end, it will look as though I’ve been double, triple, even quadruple-posting… but actually, the other player had the site locked down to her and was e-mailing me her posts during the day when she was at work (yeah, I know, we’re terrible… anyway, it’s there if you want to read through it.)
Dee's Birthday- Chapter 1
Dee lay, slumbering peacefully in her bed, wrapped in Harry's arms. In a moment, it would be her favorite time of morning. She would awaken and lavish in Harry's protective embrace for a few moments before slipping out of bed carefully, taking care not to wake him. In these early hours of the morning, there were no problems (well, typically); there were no distractions, no interruptions. She always rose early simply for these few stolen moments of peaceful tranquility before the various distractions of everyday life intruded.
Most of her friends, her first close friends actually, merely thought her habit of rising early was purely an oddness associated with Dee's tendency toward workaholism. It was true, she did tend to push herself quite vigorously in her drive to learn and excel, but she considered moments such as these to be her reward for her hard work.
This morning, however, would be a bit different. Though her mind had paid no attention to the fact, it was indeed Dee's nineteenth birthday. Being a Friday, she typically would not have classes to teach; instead, her time would normally be spent attending to the various mundane tasks required by her position as an Assistant Professor at Hogwart's. There were papers to grade and memos to send, perhaps students to tutor. Then, if she was lucky, she would have time to work on the research for her graduate studies and would perhaps spend some of the afternoon with Alastor Moody, the temporary Defense Against Dark Arts professor for the Auror Academy. It all depended on time, a commodity which Dee often wished for more of each night as she made her way to bed... at a rather late hour, though she received repeated admonitions to get more sleep. She simply did not sleep much. She never had, though that was another oddness most tended to associate with her workaholism.
It was true, she had admitted it to herself often. Her father had raised her to be a workaholic. Even though her compatriots had difficulty understanding it, they had finally began to grudgingly accept it as simply part of the oddness that made Dee who she was and typically kept their concerns to themselves.
However, on this morning, Harry had decided to disrupt her schedule just a bit. He had long wondered how it was that Dee managed to rise so early without the aid of any sort of alarm and after a bit of surreptitious probing into her mind had finally figured out how to do it himself. The night before, he had gone to bed, willing his internal clock to wake him up early enough that he would catch Dee still asleep. As he opened his eyes, it seemed to have worked. Sure enough, when he turned his head towards Dee, he could see that she was still peacefully sleeping. He allowed himself a moment to gaze at her, taking in the contrast of her features as she slept peacefully, her expression relaxed and open… though somehow, still serious. He smiled a bit at that; even in slumber, it appeared she was very business-like.
He waited until only a moment before she would normally awaken before gently kissing her awake. She responded almost immediately, wrapping her arms around him, though she was not yet fully awake. “Deedee…” he whispered her name softly into her ear. She woke, opening her eyes slowly. “Good morning, sunshine,” he greeted with an almost teasing smile.
“Harry? Did I oversleep?” she murmured, gazing up into his brilliant green eyes, the very eyes that had caught her attention when they had first met.
“No, I woke up early to surprise you. Good morning,” he replied before pulling her close and kissing her passionately. He slowly kissed his way across her neck and up to her ear. “Happy birthday,” he whispered as he nipped at her earlobe. He could feel the desire building within her… certainly, frigidity was not among Dee’s faults; though neglect at times when she was working particularly hard was sometimes an issue. Behind the desire, he sensed a momentary flicker of confusion. “You forgot your birthday again, didn’t you?” he asked.
“It had not crossed my mind,” she admitted, “my schedule is rather full today.”
“No, it isn’t. I spoke with Professor Snape and Moody. You don’t have anything you have to do today. We’re taking the weekend for us,” he replied. She started to protest, but he kissed her deeply, leaving her too breathless to speak.
“But Harry, I,” she found herself once again silenced, cut off by his kiss. Finally, she abandoned any attempt to change his mind, instead giving-in to the need she felt flooding through herself.
Finally, a couple hours later, they lay, luxuriating in the embrace of each other’s arms. “We’re going to a small village in Mauritania, Africa… it’s a group of desert nomads who’ve decided to begin a village. They’re building a small hospital and a school and need all the help they can get,” explained Harry. “I thought you would enjoy it.”
Dee smiled. Indeed, she preferred not to simply be idle, as Harry had long ago figured out. The arrangements were perfect for her… a chance for the two of them to do something together as a team, but still get her away from work. “Have I told you lately how remarkable you are, Mister Potter?” she asked as she leaned over and kissed his cheek.
Harry smiled. “C’mon, let’s get out of bed and pack a small bag to take with us. We shouldn’t need much.”
They were up, showered, and had packed a kit with medical supplies within the hour. “Oh, good morning Professor,” greeted Dee as she stopped into the office to gather a few items for her medical kit from her desk.
“D’rorah,” he inclined his head slightly in greeting. “I trust you and Mr. Potter will be careful on this excursion?”
“Of course Professor.”
“Hey Deedee, you ready yet?” asked Harry, coming into the office through the library. “Oh, good morning Professor,” he added. “Thanks for you help.”
“Just make certain you are both careful,” he admonished sternly before returning to his paperwork.
Harry turned to Dee. “You’re wearing that?” he asked, eyeing her long, white peasant skirt and long-sleeved white blouse. It seemed the only acknowledgement in her dress that they were headed to a desert area was that she was wearing a pair of sturdy sandals, rather than her usual boots. In her hand, she held a large piece of fabric. “You’ll pass out from the heat.”
“It is quite obvious you have spent no time in the desert,” she teased, kissing his cheek. “Come, we should see to your attire before you leave. T-shirts and jeans will prove painfully uncomfortable… and you will need some sort of head-covering.” Taking him by the hand, she pulled him back through the library into their quarters and began pulling clothing from the bureau as he watched silently.
“I’m not wearing that, it looks like a dress,” he said with a smile.
“It is a caftan, and if you insist on wearing slacks, you will at least need to change into a lighter fabric… though I assure you, you will be much more comfortable in the clothes I have chosen,” she replied.
By the time they set out, Harry had changed into light cotton slacks and a loose, long-sleeved shirt much like the one Dee wore. Upon his feet were a similar pair of sturdy sandals.
“Morning Harry, Dee,” greeted Ron as they were making there way out of the castle. “You guys going somewhere?”
“Africa,” replied Dee.
“Africa? What are you doing there?” asked Ron, donning his usual look of slight bewilderment.
“Helping set up a new village for a tribe of desert nomads,” replied Harry. “It’s Dee’s birthday present.”
“I didn’t know it was your birthday. Happy birthday Dee,” replied Ron. “Though, that’s the weirdest present I’ve ever heard of. Well, you two have fun. I’m gonna get to breakfast.”
“Bye Ron! See you on Monday!” called Harry as he and Dee headed out into the courtyard.
Once they were away from the school, Harry put his arm around Dee’s waist and kissed her cheek. It was a beautiful February day and was rather chilly. “We should have thought to bring coats for the walk to Hogsmeade,” remarked Dee.
Harry tightened his arm around her waist. “I’m not warm enough for you?” he teased.
The walk to Hogsmeade was fairly uneventful and the day was beautiful. Dee had taken on the unaccustomed habit of smiling, and doing so fairly frequently as they made their way through the village and down to the platform of Hogsmeade Station. Travel bags in hand, the couple disapparated, feeling that all too-familiar pull before reappearing moments later in Mauritania.
It was a typical desert morning. One could feel the last vestiges of the night chill fading from the air as the sun rose overhead, illuminating a brilliant expanse of sand underneath a nearly cloudless azure sky. Dee’s skin prickled a bit as it adapted to the sudden change in weather.
”Blimey, it’s hot here,” remarked Harry. He was quite certain he would be sweating profusely had there been any humidity whatsoever in the air. ”I guess you were right about the clothes.”
”How far is the walk to the village?” asked Dee, noting that it seemed the dunes stretched as far as her eyes could see. It seemed that the one thing Harry had taken a firm grasp of was the loathing of this particular tribe of magic; he had certainly apparated them far enough away that no one would notice their odd arrival… though they would almost certainly think it odd to see that two people had crossed the desert seemingly on foot.
”Have a bit of faith, he teased. ”Sam arranged for a pair of camels with a friend of his nearby. I how weird it would look for the two of us to just walk into the village. Sure enough, as he spoke, a trio of camels appeared over the crest of the dune before them, on adorned with a rider who was tall and lean. His weathered, olive skin and long white robes gave him the look of a desert chieftan.
“Salaam!” he called to the, his voice booming and jovial. “The two of you look as though you could use a ride!” his voice carried across the desert sands as clearly as a bell.
Dee smiled and raised a hand in greeting. ”Na’am! Anta lateef!”(Yes, you’re very kind!) she called back to him, matching the dialect she detected in his accent. The man smiled and urged the camels into a bit faster gait as Harry and Dee began making their way towards him. When they had finally come closer, the man dismounted from his camel with the swift, casual grace of one who spent much time traveling through the desert by camel.
”I am Omran Qutuz,” he greeted in rapid-fire Arabic. ”And you must be D’rorah Philosophy. Sam speaks highly of you, young woman.”
Harry watched silently, doing his best to follow the conversation through Dee’s mind as she chattered back in Arabic. ”Sam is biased. He believes me to be the very plane the heavens rest upon… I try to convince him otherwise, but you are aware of how insistent he can be.”
Omran nodded. ”He sent news of your father as well, peace be upon him,” he paused, ”He was a great man and a champion for peace between the divided peoples of our world… his loss is felt deeply by those who shared his mission.”
Dee inclined her head in acknowledgement. ”Thank you for your kind words. I hope one day to be able to say that I have been half of what he was.” She smiled and continued. ”Allow me to introduce my husband, Harry.”
“Ah yes, Harry Potter. This is a name known among the magical among us even here in the midst of the desert,” replied Omran, his hazel eyes sparkling in the desert sun. His eyes shifted to Harry and then back to Dee. ”It is good you are married on this trip, D’rorah. The tribe you are working with has a very fundamentalist attitude towards women. Indeed, I am a bit surprised they are willing to accept your help at all. You will require an escort at all times while you are working.” His smile quivered for a moment. ”It will be good for the women to have a woman around who knows a bit of medical aid though… currently the only one in the village with any medical training is a man who for reasons of so-called propriety chooses to delay treatment of their illnesses because he is afraid to see them unveiled. I am sorry to say D’rorah, it will be necessary for you to cover your face while you are there. The villagers follow their fundamentalist chief as though he were a prophet of Allah himself.”
Dee nodded. ”I have visited the Bedouin society before, Omran. I had a feeling I would encounter a rather fundamentalist attitude during this journey. I have no qualms with complying with the strictures of their faith.”
”Truly your father’s daughter… well then, let us be on our way,” he replied, gesturing to the camels he had brought with them.
Omran and Dee approached their camels, who kneeled obediently before Omran and Dee swiftly mounted. Harry watched closely, intending to mimic their movements. He had grown accustomed to the horses kept stabled at Hogwart’s, but the camels were much larger… and he had no idea how to make his kneel… it seemed to stare at him indifferently until Omran called out in sharp Arabic. Finally, the great beast sank to his knees and Harry clambered up onto its back, momentarily thrown off-balance as the camel made its way back to its feet. With that, they were off on their journey through the desert, Dee smiling at surroundings which claimed a home somewhere deep within her genetic structure and Harry marveling at the dunes and the heat.