The Gallery [Curse/Emory]

[Max Kameren]

Place Hogwarts | Time January 2009 | Characters Involve Curse Kameren, Emory Williams

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The tall stone hallways of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry were once again filled with the voices and footsteps of lively students. The walls seemed to vibrate with happiness, fulfilling their purpose once more. The holiday break was over and students milled about socializing; comparing gifts, catching up, and making plans for the new school semester.

Curse Kameren leaned with his back to the wall of the Great Hall, soaking in the ambient sounds of his peers reuniting. It had been a strange holiday for him, as it always was. Sophia was a difficult person to live with: depending on the day, she saw her son as either an object to be profited from or a source for all her problems. After the fourth row Curse had given up and retreated across the hall for the rest of his stay in London, playing fifth wheel once again to the Cummings Family Christmas. After the previous two Violet Cummings had started leaving a place for him on principal: what was another year? By the end he was exhausted and ready to return to the Wizarding World. Return to being Curse, not Kris.

Where Kris floundered in the Muggle World, Curse flourished at Hogwarts. His classes were a non-issue, a simple obstacle to be overcome. The knowledge they taught at his fifth-year level was rudimentary to Curse, who had already absorbed his textbooks and found no interest in the remedial lesson plans his professors gave him. The school had offered him access to sixth-year courses to supplement, but even those moved too slowly for him. His advanced placement had earned him a few like-minded friends, but no academic gratification. The only thing holding his interest at the school was the school itself.

Hogwarts had many secrets, and Curse spent most of his time trying to map them out. He'd heard of the legendary Marauder's Map, but without access to that Curse resolved to figure out the many passageways and secret rooms of Hogwarts on his own. Well not entirely on his own: he had a few friends, and he had the portraits. The Hogwarts portraits were Curse's main source of information at Hogwarts. They'd been here longer than any professor or student, seeing generations pass their frames. Outlasting millennia.

Professor Whippet's voice boomed through the Great Hall, shooing the students out and into the candlelit hallways to retire to their Common Rooms before curfew. A small, thin smile hinted at Curse's lips: it was almost time. A familiar shaggy-headed student passed by him and Curse whistled to get his attention.

"Hey, Williams!" Curse grinned. He pushed off the wall and followed his friend, coming up behind his shoulder with arms crossed to speak lowly: "How do you feel about starting off the school year with some exploration, hmm?"

[Emory Williams]

Christmas at Hogwarts had been a mixed bag. As an orphan he no longer had any home to go to, and it had only been the second year without his family. Their absence still tore a hole in his chest, leaving him gasping for breath at the most random times but he'd found new focus that past Summer. Revenge, or at least planning it, was proving to be the best kind of healing. Well that and the company of some very good friends. They'd invited him to their homes several times, but in the end he'd enjoyed having most of the castle practically to himself for two weeks. They should enjoy their family time without him hanging around.

Now though, with the loud chatter and happy laughter echoing through the corridors, he was glad everyone was back. He'd caught up with his Gryffindor friends during dinner, laughing away their numerous and very out of tune renditions of Happy Birthday and stuffing his face with glorious Hogwarts food.

It felt like all too soon Professor Whippet's voice was booming through the Great Hall, shooing the students out and into the candlelit hallways to retire to their Common Rooms before curfew. Emory sneaked a couple last Cauldron Cakes into his pocket before standing up, his eyes darting around for the one person he had yet to see, as he walked toward his common room.

"How do you feel about starting off the school year with some exploration, hmm?"

Emory grinned, his boyish face lighting up as he heard the voice of one of his closest friends. 

"Oh I don't know. There's that girl in Hufflepuff who invited me to play Exploding Snap with her tonight," he said glancing at Curse with a smirk. Everyone knew what Exploding Snap really meant and it had nothing to do with cards. "But I suppose for you, I can give up those sweet sweet curves. What's the plan?" 

It would be sheer lunacy to think that Curse didn't have a plan of some kind. 

[Max Kameren]

A little jealousy always crept into Curse at times like these: reunions, where friends would greet each other so warmly after an absence. Save for a couple friends, Curse didn't really have that kind of connection with people. He knew he was a bit of a know-it-all and couldn't help the condescending tone he took with people his age who couldn't keep up. So far he'd only found one other student who either he didn't take the tone with or he'd somehow managed to overlook Curse's more grating qualities.

-Curse's Emory quote-

-emory's exploding snap hufflepuff reply-

He could barely suppress his eye roll and groan at the mention of 'sweet sweet curves'. Curse grinned back at his friend. "Well I hate to take you away from a night of unsatisfactory fumbling, but I owe Percival Peregrine from the feast scene on the second floor a favour. Thought maybe you could help out?"

"Wait, is it your birthday?" Curse's sharp green eyes looked over his friend analytically almost as if he could see the one year ticker move forward on Emory's chest. "Well happy birthday, friend. I'll try not to get you detention. Come on."

He cocked his head down a darkened corridor and turned, not bothering to check if Emory followed. It was Emory: he knew he would follow.

The duo wove deep into he dungeons; Curse was careful to take the long route to where they were going to avoid any professors who might be suspicious of returning students looking to explore. Their guard was warranted; Curse and Emory were seasoned dungeons spelunkers, but he knew some of their depths were not for their more faint-of-heart students. After multiple debates with authorities about Curse's caste privileges he eventually found it easier to just work around the faculty. God help them, Curse would never have the patience to work for a school.

"Turns out our friend Percy has an exploding snap partner of his own." Once they were deep enough into the dungeons Curse was confident they wouldn't be heard he began to elaborate: "in exchange for helping me find that back entrance to the Prefect Chambers I told him I'd help him find an old flame. Apparently she's been stored somewhere in the dungeons under a charmed cloth that binds the painting into its own frame. He pointed me in the direction we're supposed to look and - Oh!"

Curse stopped and reached into the pocket of his robes and pulled out a folded scrap of parchment with a wry smile and a laugh. "He gave me a description. Don't think we'll be able to miss her." He handed his friend a scribbling he'd made on Percy's suggestion of a nude woman, sporting a beehive-like mound of hair and a black fan folded in her hand. Curse's artistry wasn't exactly spot-on: she looked a bit more like a naughty cartoon than the 17th century French concubine Percy had described to him.

"Gotta find the damn dungeon first though - oh, maybe this is it?" The Ravenclaw reached out with pale thin fingers to trace a seal on the wall where there was a thick seam in the stonework. "Look for a brass button, Percy said there would be one..."

Ooc: was going to link to a portrait I was thinking of but this stupid airport doesn't have wifi!! It's Olympia by Edouard Manet.

[Emory Williams]

"Well I hate to take you away from a night of unsatisfactory fumbling, but I owe Percival Peregrine from the feast scene on the second floor a favour. Thought maybe you could help out?"

"Hmm, fumbling with a Hufflepuff or fumbling around with another of your mysteries... what to do? " Emory pretended to ponder, smirking at Curse. "Oh you have me convinced. Lead the way my friend!" Adventure was in his blood and there was always adventure to be had with his best friend. 

"Wait, is it your birthday?" The young Druid snorted while he nodded. He knew better than to expect Curse to remember such minor details. Besides, this was promising to be an excellent birthday present. "Well happy birthday, friend. I'll try not to get you detention. Come on." 

Emory followed the other boy, waiting patiently for more details. A favour for a portrait wasn't a lot to go on but he trusted that it would be something interesting. Over the course of their friendship, the duo had had plenty of exciting expeditions. Camping in the Forbidden Forest, visiting the mythical Chamber of Secrets, even exploring the numerous tunnels that around under and out of the school had provided them hours of entertainment. Today it appeared to be a journey to the Dungeons. Not Emory's favourite. Perhaps due to his druidic nature, he preferred their trips outside. Speaking of, he owed the centaurs a visit again soon, a thought he filed away for another day. 

He plodded along behind Curse, keeping quiet and his ears alert for any footsteps not their own. The pair knew which passages to avoid by now, but some tricksy teachers liked to vary their patrol routes every now and then. Not that it would matter much, Curse had an extraordinary ability to talk his way out of trouble but it was easier to not have to deal with it in the first place. Several minutes later and it seemed that his friend had decided it was safe to talk again.

"Turns out our friend Percy has an exploding snap partner of his own. In exchange for helping me find that back entrance to the Prefect Chambers I told him I'd help him find an old flame. Apparently she's been stored somewhere in the dungeons under a charmed cloth that binds the painting into its own frame. He pointed me in the direction we're supposed to look and - Oh!"

Emory raised his eyebrows at the information. They were finding Percy's girlfriend? Not quite on the same level as that one time where Curse had convinced him to go diving in the Lake to discover if the Mermen had any secrets. After his druidic affinity with the centaurs they'd wondered if the same would apply to the Water People. It hadn't. And they hadn't been able to talk their way out of several weeks of detention either. Perhaps they needed something a little tamer for now. Still they needed a little more information if they were going to find one specific portrait. Hogwarts had thousands of them and that was just on the walls. There would be Merlin only knew how many more in Storage. 

Curse reached into the pocket of his robes and pulled out a folded scrap of parchment. "He gave me a description. Don't think we'll be able to miss her." He handed Emory a scribbling he'd made on Percy's suggestion of a nude woman, sporting a beehive-like mound of hair and a black fan folded in her hand. 

The young wizard stopped walking, staring in disbelief at the drawing Curse had given him. "This?! This is Percy's girlfriend?!" Emory said, shaking his head in disbelief. "Man, you are gifted in many ways, but I don't think you should ever consider Sketch Artist as a career option..." He chortled as he glanced at the picture again. He supposed that Curse was right... they wouldn't be able to miss that. 

"Gotta find the damn dungeon first though - oh, maybe this is it?" The Ravenclaw reached out with pale thin fingers to trace a seal on the wall where there was a thick seam in the stonework. "Look for a brass button, Percy said there would be one..."

Emory did as he was told, running his fingers against the stone. But a couple of minutes later he'd found nothing. He frowned, looking at his friend. "Maybe this isn't it?" he asked, taking a step back to look at the wall again. As he did so, his sharp gaze caught a dull glint of something on the floor where his foot had been just seconds ago. Emory scowled as he crouched. Set into the floor, between the cobblestones and deep enough that a foot wouldn't set it off, was a small brass button. He supposed it was as good a place as any to hide a secret button. People rarely looked too closely at the floor and the dust was certainly doing a good job of hiding it. 

"Think I've found the button," he declared, pushing it with a flourish and waiting for the reveal.