2011: The Final Countdown

[Yrjö 'Nigel' Hämäläinen]

There had been a memo sitting on Yrjö Hämäläinen's desk when he had arrived last week telling him that the 'powers that be' had insisted that a ruling had been passed that school based examinations where only to be held at appropriate times for the students and not for the examiner. Yrjö was not pleased, looking at the clock he was forced to do some mental arithmetic to arrive that far from his usual 9am he would have to leave the Ministry at Nine Forty-Five PM to reach the school in time. Plus of course some additional leeway to make up for the fact that this was a new school and no doubt they would be horribly disorganized. So Nine Fifteen? Yes that would do.

He had his briefcase neatly packed with some grading that he had not yet gotten to, there had been a outbreak of froglitus at the Ministry and it had been difficult to concentrate with all the people jumping around a ribberting all day. In many respects it was a welcome change to be getting out of the office, even if these prospects of going to Australia did leave him some level of concern that this Gippsland Grammar might well be utterly inhospitable to decency. It wouldn't have been the first time that he had arrived to find the 'school' was nothing more then a campfire with a ring of underdressed natives looking at him quizzically before clicking their confusion at one another. Abet it had been a honest mistake and they had graded quite well on their practical components though the theory side was clearly being let down due to their inability to read or write more then a couple of simple words.

There was no direct floo to the school from the Ministry, instead when it came to Nine O'Clock Yrjö checked his briefcase and umbrella, he had forgone his sandwich seeing that he had already eaten both it and a bland dinner from the Ministry Cafeteria and took the floo to the Australian Ministry of Magic, located in the City of Melbourne before taking a one way portkey to the school itself. Disorientation hitting Yrjö the moment he was outside into the basking glow of early summer. "Humph.." Yrjö stated to the world at large as his eyes landed on a very small (by Wizarding Standards) white and grey building surrounded by wide expanses of grassland and native trees. Surly this was not the school in question? It had no towers or stone bricks.. why what kind of school was it when there wasn't even a high cast iron fence to greet you? Instead there was a garden and white picket fence.. very unwizardy!

But that was the world all around wasn't it? People did say that times where changing and so Yrjö strode up the path to the front door..woefully inadequate! It couldn't fit a troll even if you tried! and knocking reminded himself that he was here on Important Government Business as a employee of the Department of Education and that it wasn't his place to judge if a school was 'worthy' of having their students assessed, no it was on the merits of the students themselves and the quality of the education offered that would see the worth of the school itself when the exam scores where released. Knocking again Yrjö waited until the door was opened to state "Good Morning, My name is Yrjö Hämäläinen from the Examination Authority and this is Gippsland Grammar School for Young Witches if I am to be correct?" if he was wrong he'd just deny the use of the word 'Witches' as a slip of the tongue or mus-translation for of course there was no such thing as magic... except if you where in the know.

[GuestGuest]

The date and time of the examination had been sent and Rowan, with several years of practice and having done this before already, had everything set for the examiner's arrival and for the tests, including the school's early warning defense system that went by the name of Lady Macbeth. Yes, dear readers, the school did lack towers and stone walls and iron gates because, if one came anywhere near the property, the nosy patrolling little fire lizard not only spotted them but had to tell the entire neighborhood alerted Rowan and Marcus to new arrivals.

So it was that no sooner had one Ministry examinations officer completed his arrival on the grounds then she had circled, resisted the urge to flame him based on attitude alone and sent messages to Rowan that their 'guest' had arrived. Once he reached the door and knocked, she hovered next to him, staring as if daring him to enter without waiting for her mum. Did we mention she had eaten quite a few chili peppers this morning? Fortunately for him, the door opened.

[GuestGuest]

Rowan smiled to herself as the message from Lady Macbeth came to her instantly. By the time the examiner had reached the front door and lifted his hand to knock, she was behind it waiting, wearing her wizarding robe over her skirt and blouse. She counted to ten and opened the door just as he tried to knock a second time. "Good Morning, Mr. Hämäläinen," Rowan greeted him, probably one of the few who could say his name easily enough thanks to the several years she spent researching runes in Norway. "Good to see you again," she added, having dealt with the man before both at Hogwarts and after that. "Come in, please," she told him as she stepped aside to allow him entrance, nodding at Lady Macbeth that it was okay and to return to her flying. Said fire lizard taking off a bit disappointed that she didn't get to flame the invader.

"Right this way," she said as she led him to the room set aside for the testing. "It's all ready, however, you are a half hour early. Would you like some tea?" she asked.

[Yrjö 'Nigel' Hämäläinen]

There seemed to be a odd flying thing that at first Yrjö had assumed to be some kind of large moth or bird, instead as it came closer the word 'dragon' came to mind. Well at least that made things clearer in terms of if he had the correct address or not. Nodding a 'hello' to the creature as was his custom Yrjö assumed it to be some kind of watch-dragon and paid it no mind except to ask that "I expect you have a license for that.. Lizard? Now what do they call them? Dragon..Lizard?" Yrjö pondered, he had never been one to remember animals well and at the same time he was rather shaken from his usual indifferent composure by the young woman standing before him. It was funny how a name might pass you by until a face was put with it and Yrjö had never thought that the Scottish woman would come to end up running a school in such a out of the way place. "Indeed, I have to say it is a unexpected pleasure" Yrjö was eying the room behind him, the purple walls getting a slightly distressed look for a man whom 'beige' was considered the height of extremes. Indeed while of course as a representative of the Ministry he was to be thorough and without personal feelings there was some element of admiration in having his name pronounced correctly and seeing that all was in order.

"A full half hour you say? Yes I had expected a delay on arriving from the Ministry however it seems that in this case they have outdone themselves by being perfectly efficient" it was clear that there was a element of disbelif in Yrjö's words that the Australian wizards had managed something as simple as setting a portkey without stuffing it up. Stepping into the Parlor he made a slow circle of looking around, it was certainly very different to the other schools he had visited, but that was the nature of magical education, every school was utterly unique. Which by right lead to the importance and diligence of hard workers like himself to ensure that no matter what each child would be given a fair and proper chance. Or at least that was what the guidelines laid down in the charter of the department said. Glancing back to watch the dragon fly away Yrjö then followed Ms Dragonsinger noting as he did that there was little signs of the usual noise and chaos that he was almost used to when attending magical institutions on exam day. "Everything does seem to be in order" Nigel said checking the room to ensure that it met his standards before thinking over the offer of tea. It wasn't his usual policy to accept drinks but seeing that he had the time and there was no harm Yrjö nodded "Yes, white with one sugar would be most satisfactory" Nigel stated as he glanced out one of the windows to see a man walking past. It was awfully light and open, "I have to say I did not expect to find magical education being taught in such a.. domestic.. surroundings?" it was difficult for a man such as he to put his words across without meaning offense but really he was just curious as to why such a school would come to exist when most Headmasters and Headmistresses chose ancient buildings steeped in history to make into schools. "No doubt it is part of this .. modern.. revolution they are always insisting is upon us" Yrjö did enjoy the time before exams where to begin. Students where often quiet and staff respectful for the rare visits, the manners a rare change from the indifference he tended to receive back at home in the UK.

[Katelyn Davis]

Kat felt like she was going to be sick, everything she had wanted in her life was hanging on today and the grade on a single exam would make or break her chances of being accepted to Oxford University to Study Healing. Her bag was sitting on the concrete and she was feeding blades of grass to Bertrand to try and calm her nerves. The nightmares had come back with the start of revision time and sleep was plagued with a million disasters of how everything could go wrong. What if she forgot how to speak English? or what if a earthquake struck while she was doing her exam? Worse what if the paper was on something she knew nothing about and everyone else came out with O's and she got a Troll grade? For Kat it all felt far too real, her Dad had always warned her not to be lazy because it would come back to bite her in the end. Kat had laughed it off at the time but now having done each of her class exams and practicals she felt more nervous and not less for it. Healing had gone well enough and Kat had felt 'okay' with her Transfiguration and Charms.. Potions of course was a nervous affair..memories of the time she had accidentally given the Headmistress (or Rowan as Kat knew her) illicit drugs instead of the correct herbs at Glastonbury two years ago made her extra fretful of making a similar mistake this time.

At least she wasn't alone in her worry, Kat would have felt even worse had it not been for Storm and Adrienne who where sitting the same exam today as well. Though Kat worried that she hadn't seen Adrienne today, would she be a no-show? That would be the worst thing of all! There was some good things about today of course, the sky was blue and the sun was warm against her skin. She hadn't been able to find her summer skirt but had done her best to be presentable for Rowan and for the person from the Ministry who roamer has it would be taking the final exam instead of the headmistress. Kat was nervous about that too, people from the Ministry tended to make her nervous because they looked down on her family for being part of Wizards Without Borders and for being mostly Muggle. Though Kat of course was with her magical family for the moment. Kat didn't know what she would do when the school year ended, she hadn't decided if she would stay in Australia until university begun or go on assignment or go home to England, in a way she was waiting to see where life would take her next. Checking that she had everything for what felt like the millionth time that morning Kat looked up as a shadow passed overhead and smiled at the familiar silhouette of Lady Macbeth flying around. If only she could fly away and enjoy the sunny day instead of having to sit the exam instead. But then if she did that she would never get her NEWTs or be able to go to University and then she'd be unable to study healing to become a proper qualified healer like her Mum or Sophie.. so grim faced and nervous she would do her best and swallow the yucky feelings so that she could concentrate on what was important - her future and making her family proud!

[GuestGuest]

While Lady Macbeth did not always remember everyone she ever met, she was quick to recall thoughts by listening to her mum's and so it was, as Rowan greeted the man by name, Lady Macbeth picked up flashes of her mum talking to him at other schools for similiar situations. Since Mum greeted him by name, that meant only one thing and so it was the little lady left the porch and headed straight for her area of their home and to her stash. Grabbing one out of its hiding place, Lady Macbeth headed straight for the open office window Mum left for her to go in and out and once again flew to where the pair were standing, now in the test room and hovered in front of the visitor waiting for his hand to open just enough and when it did, shared one of her treasure with him. Yes, folks, Nigel was the lucky recipient of a gift of a pack of Bertie Beetles from Lady Macbeth and one word went through Rowan's thoughts from her familiar. "Friend!" With that, the fire lizard took off once again to find a warm sunny spot and nap after all that 'work'.

[GuestGuest]

As she led Nigel to the testing area and he asked about the license for Lady Macbeth, Rowan smiled and nodded. "Oh definitely. The shop where I found her in Diagon Alley took care of all that back... Oh my, it's been six years now! How time flies," she told him. It seemed like she had never been without the inquisitive 'helpful' fire lizard and yet, at the same time, it seemed like they had only begun their travels together. Time did fly. As did Lady Macbeth who had joined them at the test room and hovered waiting for Nigel's hand to be just right before dropping her offering in it. "Well, you seem to have impressed her," Rowan told him. "She does not often share her 'treasure' with others. She thinks you are most noble when she shares like that."

At his accepting the offer of tea, Rowan called for Tetris who appeared instantly, took the order and came back in just a couple of minutes. Tetris carefully set the tea on the desk as he told Nigel. "Sir's tea is ready! Sir is most welcome to call Tetris if he needs anything else for Tetris has heard great stories from his aunt of how gentlemanly sir is when he visits that school!" Bowing to Nigel, he instantly disappeared back to the kitchens. Who'd have thunk it! Apparently, Gippsland is the headquarters of the 'Yrjö 'Nigel' Hämäläinen Fan Club'!

"Well, it seems your fame precedes you," Rowan said smiling as she let Nigel settle in and have a moment to return to composure if needed after portkeying. Sometimes, it could be rather wrenching on a person. At his comment about the domestic surroundings, Rowan explained, "Well, besides the fact there are no castles here and putting one up would be rather a give away to unknowing Muggles, we try to let the girls feel as comfortable as possible. There's enough stress for them with their studies, especially if they don't come from a wizarding family."

[GuestGuest]

Storm had spent the evening before having Oli's father quiz her on various facts before heading back to the school to spend the night there. She figured if she was there and accidently overslept, at least she's be a lot closer to the test to get there. Fortunately, she woke up on time and spent a bit more time reviewing. There were some sections, like Magical Law and Government, that she felt rather comfortable about. There were other sections, like Defense Against the Dark Arts that she wondered if she really stood a chance on. Potions were halfway between the two.

She finally closed the books for the last time and dressed carefully, as if it might add some calm to her. Outwardly, she appeared quite calm. Inwardly was another matter. Finally dressed and ready to go, Storm made her way to the assigned room to find Professor Dragonsinger and the examiner there already. She was glad she was ten minutes early and somewhat surprised to find she was the first one there. She knew Kat was outside, she had seen her from her bedroom window but Storm thought for sure Adrienne would be there already. She knew she hadn't seen her the past few days but then, again, Storm had been spending most of her time with Oli and her dad trying to study and stay calm. "Good morning, Headmistress, sir," Storm greeted the pair before taking a seat.

[Yrjö 'Nigel' Hämäläinen]

Normally being in a situation where he did not know his way around would be a concern to Yrjö but experience had told him that Miss Dragonsinger was a good woman well versed in the operation of the Ministry and what was required. "I believe the Ministry has put quite a bit in store by ensuring that Time does not fly Mistress Dragonsinger" Yrjö assured her in what might.. had it not been stated in a complete monotone could have almost been mistaken for a joke. But one thing about Yrjö was he was never one to waste time with such fleeting things as humor. Seeing that the testing room had been laid out to ministry specifications.. single tables with gaps in between and a wall clock to pass the time Nigel wondered why he could not be so lucky with all his rounds.. well before the return of the firelizard. Nigel stared at it blankly before he came to put his umbrella and briefcase down against the table before he opened his hand up for whatever it was the creature insisted he have. Nigel was of course expecting something disgusting, a half eaten beetle.. maybe the tail or a rat that it had caught?

Instead he felt his hand close on something that crinkled in his palm. "Treasure?" He asked the Headmistress as opening his hand he found that the crinkle came from some kind of wrapping. "What.. exactly may I ask is this?" Nigel had never seen Muggle candy before, and had most certainly never come across the Australian confectionery that seemed to have some kind of cartoon monster on the front. Now give him a chocolate frog and he would certainly have stated that he had no wish for food that tried to hop away and certainly did not need the fat contained within it but this Muggle sweet had him entranced to the point where he hadn't even noticed the firelizard fly off again.

This was all rather peculiar, as indeed was the reason for the strange actions by the create "Noble? Hardly I am just a humble Ministry servant" had Yrjö a sense of humor he might well have found cause to laugh at such a preposterous idea. It seemed that the school also had House Elves, Yrjö made a mental note to check against the S.P.E.W database when he got home to check that the Elves where correctly accounted for. While it wasn't technically in his area one of his old friends worked in the department and it had been far too long since Yrjö had last called on him. Of course no amount of records would have warned Yrjö of the gossip that appeared to run rampet between the schools. "I do say, this is hardly proper!" Yrjö was forced to exclaim on hearing the House Elf speak up that they had been forewarned of his arrival "Now out you little scamps.. no more of this tomfoolery" Yrjö said waving away the House Elf before sitting heavily in his chair, the weariness of a long day along with the extra strain of port key travel making him a bit short with the Elves. "I apologise but you really must see about reminding your Elves of their correct station in life" Nigel explained to the Headmistress as if giving her a kind piece of advice. After all she was still new at the job, Nigel might well have never taught a single class but he respected the effort and challenge that it took to head a school these days.

"Mistress Dragonsinger, fame is the one thing I wish never to strive for and forever to avoid" he assured her before taking a experimental sip of the tea. At least in all the gossiping the House Elves had managed to pass along the important information that Yrjö preferred his tea stirred counter-clockwise with the spoon resting to the left. The only thing missing was the biscuit but Nigel placed the strange Muggle confectionery down on the teacup in it's place. "That sounds logical I expect" Yrjö stated diplomatically as he went about organizing the papers, parchments and quills on his desk..along with his clock of course. Yrjö had not realized that in conversing with the Headmistress the first student had already arrived. It was most certainly not a common occurrence for Yrjö to be caught out socializing when there was work to be done. "I think we are just about ready, would you please see to sending the students in Mistress Dragonsinger?" For a moment you might have almost caught a small smile on the otherwise barren face of the Examiner as he set his cup of tea aside to better keep a eye on the young woman who had already taken a seat.

[GuestGuest]

It took Rowan just a moment to remember that Nigel wasn't much for turning a phrase or odd jokes. No, he was rather a literal person as it were. She also recalled that he spent 99.999% of his time completely in the wizarding world. Actually, she thought perhaps it was a full one hundred percent but gave the benefit of the .001% to those rare phenomena occurences that might happen. "It's a candy that's popular here. It doesn't move like chocolate frogs and is chocolate with bits of honeycomb and coconut," she explained, adding with a smile, "They make it in the shape of a cartoonish beetle but no bugs are actually involved," remembering his tendency to take things literally. "It is probably Lady Macbeth's favorite thing in the world so she must feel you are a very good person to share so quickly like that."

It was hard for Rowan not to laugh at the sight of Tetris fanelfing Nigel. Apparently, he had really been polite to their aunt and she raved about him to the other house elves. Looks like she had continued raving about that 'tall distinguished and rather entrancing test examiner'. The house elf shook his head. "Tetris not being tomfoolish, sirs. Tetris has heard how polite and kind Mister is and is honored to meet someone his aunt talks so highly of. Auntie has told us to make sure we treat you right while you are here and she looks forward to your visit at her school, too!. Yes, sir." The elf finished as he disappeared. "Tetris and his twin Pacman asked to be hired as the school's house elves. You met their aunt the past couple of years when you oversaw the tests at my previous employer. The camera?" she explained and reminded him. Yes, most people never forgot the camera that hung around that one dear elf's neck, usually because of the flash they saw thanks to it.

"Yes," she agreed at his offer of advice and when he sent her off to corral the other students, she nodded to Storm and headed out to find the missing two.

[Yrjö 'Nigel' Hämäläinen]

"I see.." Yrjö stated calmly "...and not at all would it be a offer to perhaps sway a ministry offical more in ones favour?" Yrjö's face was stern for a moment before softening just that little inch back to it's usual 'probably-wouldn't-know-the-meaning-of-fun-even-if-it-ran-them-over-with-a-two-tonne-truck' way. "I must say that you seem to wear the office of Headmistress quite well.." and hadn't he once advised a much younger woman that teaching would be perfectly suited to her talents? Of course Yrjö was not always correct in his assessment..after all who could have guessed his 2nd cousin would have been made Minister for Magic?, but it was a suitable feeling of satisfaction on the occasions when he found himself vindicated by the turn of events. Coughing slightly Yrjö's otherwise good mood was quickly souring by the antics of the House Elves "What kind of name is Tetris? It sounds some kind of savory biscuit?" Yrjö asked once the insolent House Elf had left. Pacman made even less sense of course to the purely wizarding Yrjö, where it not for the occasional encounter while traveling or (more often) fishing Yrjö might well have never seen a Muggle at all.

Of course the explanation made Yrjö visibly twitch "Yes.. I remember that one" oh how he could forget being followed around by a House Elf wielding a flash camera and mimicking his every move? "I had rather hoped it had retired." he muttered to himself before shaking his head, it was time to get down to business. Pushing his cup to one side Yrjö eyed the Muggle sweet before deciding he would allow himself to try it near the end of the test.. after all much as he respected Headmistress Dragonsinger there was still the possibility of some mischief involved. It was always a interesting experiment to try and put names to the faces of the students as they arrived. The girl who was early seemed quite intent, hardly a surprise considering the importance of the test the students where taking today. While they had already sat the class based NEWT exams today's exam was the all important entry criteria used by many of the higher profile universities in the wizarding world.

With the clock ticking the seconds down before the test was to begin Yrjö looked up to watch a very tall and older girl walk in. He would have asked if she was in the right room for surely she was too tall to be a student? But one look at the downright frightened face was enough to tell that here was a student who had not prepared enough for the day. No doubt she had been up all night cramming before the final test. gesturing for her to take her seat Nigel then sat back to watch the clock tick down to nine am precisely. Disappointment showed on his face as he resided to the fact that only two of three students he was set to examine had made it so far as the room. "Very well then, no time to waste and so good morning students, My name is Yrjö Hämäläinen and I shall be assessing you all today. Please remember that any use of auto-answer quills, rememberalls, detachable cribbing cuffs, self correcting ink and mobile.. telephones.. are all banned and will result in a immediate failure" if the speech was familiar it was purely because it was the exact same one he gave every time examinations where conducted. "You will have fifteen minutes reading time, after which you will have two hours to complete the examination to the best of your abilities". Nigel waved his hand causing the examination papers, quills and spare parchment to neatly float to land on each desk, unrolling as they did. "Your reading time begins.." Nigel glanced at the clock, waiting for the second hand to position itself correctly "Now".

((OOC: Students will receive their test questions via PM :BIC))

[Katelyn Davis]

One of Kat's biggest failings was that she never wore a watch, you never needed one with Wizards Without Borders since often the days where set by what time sun up and evening came. So she had no idea how long it was until the exam started and just had to rely on the fact that someone would call them in. Maybe if she had a watch the process of waiting wouldn't have been so bad, now Kat was debating if she should have gone to the toilet just in case she needed to go later. Too late it seemed however as one of the house elves marched out to shoo her inside because 'Mr Nigel had arrived!' whatever that meant Kat had no idea but regretfully she followed the elves advice to meet Rowan on her way to find her. "Oh no.. I'm late arn't I?" assuming the worst Kat barely stayed long enough for a answer before she bundled up her things and ran into the room that had been used for the exams all week. "Sorry!" she said before remembering the whole 'silence' rule. The man.. 'Mr Nigel' Kat corrected herself, did not look pleased to see her and immediately the feeling of nausea grew stronger. Why didn't she study more? Yet distracting her from the thoughts was the fact that Adrienne was still missing. Kat felt torn between the relief that she hadn't been the last one to arrive and concern for her classmate that she might miss the exam all together.

Taking a deep breath Kat sat down at the desk next to Storms, at least she wasn't alone. "Good luck.." she whispered across before the examiner started talking. Kat sighed, so much of the words went over her head and desperately she was trying to remember the facts that she'd been revising over and over again. Maybe she should have taken a calming draught? But Kat had read a piece in a magazine that said that students who used them tended to end up with lower grades then others, and while dealing with butterflies in her stomach was one thing she needed every point she could get in her favour if she was going to get into Oxford. They only took the best and even with letters from Rowan and Sophie there was a limit to how much good will she could get on service to Wizards Without Borders alone. Nervously she glanced across at Storm before worrying that it might be seen as cheating and so forced herself to stare at her own hands instead until the sound of parchment and papers floating across the room made her look up. Once they where given the instruction that reading time was started Kat opened the book, her hand shaking slightly with nerves. At least she could answer the first one, she knew her name well enough after all. The animagus part looked simple enough to restore her confidence a little and so once given the order that writing was now permitted Kat picked up her quill and slowly started to write.

[GuestGuest]

Storm waited quietly as Rowan explained that the House Elves names had been picked by their mother based on some electronic Muggle games the maternal house elf had seen being played prior to having the pair. As for the notorious, camera wielding house elf who was also aunt to this pair ever retiring, well that probably wasn't going to happen as they loved to serve and were happy when working. Soon the headmistress left and it was not long after that Kat arrived. As she wished Storm good luck, Storm had just enough time to respond with "You too" before Nigel called the room, aka the two of them, to order. Still no sign of Adrienne. Storm was a bit surprised considering the plans the girl had shared with Storm that day in the kitchen. She hoped she was okay but for now, she had to put that out of her mind and focus on the test.

With the command to begin, Storm set to work and began working her way through the answers, doing her best to write out her explanations as clearly as she could. She began to worry that she wouldn't have enough time but surprisingly, Storm found she finished with about five extra minutes to spare and looked over her answers one last time before he called time. Once done, she turned in her test as Nigel directed and headed out to the hall where she actually took a deep breath of relief.

[Yrjö 'Nigel' Hämäläinen]

It was certainly a more interesting visit then Yrjö had been expecting, more he was used to the desperate pleading of Headmasters to overlook the failings of one or more basic level of standard lest it ruin their reputation. While he had certainly broadened his knowledge of Muggle devices thanks to the thoughtful explanation from Headmistress Dragonsinger however Yrjö was not given to admit that so much of it had gone right over his head.
At least everything seemed to run to schedule, even the noisy arrival of the red haired girl did not put things to far amiss as Nigel just directed for her to take her seat. Glancing down at the names list he wondered which name went with the girl before the time came to give the traditional welcoming speech and get on with the days main event. His face had been made stern by the sound of whispered voices before the exam but now there was just the familiar sight of heads down hard at work while he waited the required fifteen minutes before stating that reading time was over and they could now begin. Yrjö had expected the missing girl to arrive before then but with the seat remaining empty there was nothing that could be done except to make a note of the table in his ledger alongside the name of the girl who had not attended the exam.

Slowly the hours ticked by, Nigel had enjoyed his cup of tea and quietly looked over the paperwork, writing up a letter to be filed and softballed though the various ministry departments before being returned with the young man's results Yrjö could have sent them off with a owl now, however laziness took over and he decided that it would be much easier to attend to the grading in bulk where he could do so on autopilot without a single taxing thought. In a way Yrjö thought that would be kinder also, after all a Muggle was hardly going to pass the exam. While there had of course been precedent for Muggles who where connected to the magical world though marriage or that of birth it was a entirely different matter for one who had no connection at all to the Magical world as far as Yrjö had been able to discover. It was almost as bad as the time that 'JK' had stolen copies of his W.O.M.B.A.T exams and published them on something called the interwebs for everyone to see. Of course the Department was forever talking about modernizing and 'improving engagement' but Yrjö thought that there was no substitute for good old fashioned examining with a experienced assessor.

What was the world coming to anyway with all this new fangled gadgets? Exactly two hours after he had last spoken the ugly clock on his desk let out a firm HOOT! Looking over the students one was sitting in wait for the end while the other made Nigel sigh as the girl dropped her quill in shock at the sound. "Time is up, please place your quills and parchment neatly on your desk remembering that the theft of exam material is a offence that will result in instant dismissal." Yrjö was glad to see the end of the time as the cup of tea had lead to pressure in his bladder, high time to make a brief refreshing stop before returning to the Ministry. But of course there was work to be done and with a flick of his wand the exam papers neatly rolled themselves up and flew into his briefcase followed by the ugly clock by which he counted time. It was as he got up that he remembered the strange Muggle confectionery that he'd put beside his cup and so far neglected. What had Headmistress Dragonsinger called them? It was a minor matter though as Nigel unwrapped the chocolate, disappointed in a way that it did not try to struggle or jump away before he took a experimental bite. "Hum.. quite suitable" he muttered to himself before leaving the room and excusing his way though the much required bathroom stop before at last wishing Headmistress Dragonsinger a warm farewell, he would no doubt be seeing her again next year with a new collection of students. Life went on as they said.

[Katelyn Davis]

Kat had felt her nerves tense around her stomach as she started to write, it seemed to take forever for her hand to make the letters, she was too used to just jotting down her thoughts in big loops of biro or pencil depending on what she had on hand. Quills where awkward inventions that reminded her of the sticks they used in some parts to draw lessons and pictures in the dirt or sand rather then waste valuable paper. In many ways she was relying on the luck she and Storm had wished upon each other, maybe she should have practiced more with a Quill before the exam but within the first half hour her wrist was aching from the unusual pressure caused by continuous writing with a not-so familiar writing instrument. It would be worth it though, Kat told herself that over and over as she flicked between pages, jumping from one question to the next by what seemed the easiest as her brother and Ellie had advised. The best news of all was that the questions hadn't changed too much over the years, Kat didn't know what she would have done if it wasn't for Anton's help, he knew so much more about everything..or so it felt that she was so very proud of him and wanted to make him so in return.

All that stood between her and her dreams was a rather drab man in a grey suit. Who'd have thought that against war, plague, famine and natural disaster her life could depend on such a unlikely source of tension? Kat reminded herself not to waste time staring when she had so many questions to answer. They seemed to go on forever or maybe it was because she was spending too much time on the ones that where unimportant? Whatever it was she was still answering the final question as the final Hoot called, startled she glanced up just a second before quickly scrawling out the last line of her answer and tossing the quill down lest she be told off for writing after the time had run out. It was a funny thing that it took until the exams where collected and Kat walked out into the hall on unsteady feet for her to realise she now had absolutely no idea of what to do with her life, until the results came in there would be no way to tell if she would be accepted to Oxford to study like she so very wished to, or if she would have to study elsewhere.. or worse be rejected all together! Hugging her bag to herself Kat ventured outside, the rush of air starting to bring a bit of colour back to her face as she scanned the horizon for a certain firelizard, and waved to Sam who'd instinct was to return the moment the Ministry person had disappeared. Kat wished she could have had the same luck, now she felt less secure then ever.

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