062 red letters

[eat_me_beat_me]

[On the heels of yesterday's broadcast graffiti has appeared throughout the castle. "HHH" "Talk Hard" and "The Truth is a Hex" has been painted in varying colors (mostly red) in various places in the castle. On the walls, on the ceiling, up one of the moving staircases... always on the stonework, never defacing any of the art (that would be rude). No one's seemed to have owned up to it but anyone who remembers Paradisa should figure it out fairly quickly.

Nora is supposed to be in class at the moment. She doesn't really remember which one and she can't say that she particularly cares. Magic is cool and all but some of these lectures are just fucking snore fests. That being the case she's found the biggest window that gives her the best vantage point to watch that dragon. Currently she's sitting in a chair with her feet up on the windowsill filling up a sketchbook with quick sketches of that beast. Hey if it's there she's going to take advantage of it! She speaks as she adds a few scales on her latest drawing]

I don't know whether it's gratifying or depressing to know that high school is pretty much the same here as it is back home. The only difference is adding some magic into the mix.

Oh man but can I just say that these moving paintings are fucking sweet?! I wish I could take one back with me. No, no, more than that I wish I could actually do that - paint something and have it actually take on a life of its own. It's just so trippy, the thought that something as simple as paint on canvas can become something more. That it can live and talk and move around.

[She looks up at a nearby painting. The young woman therein smiles and nods politely at her. Nora just grins]

You know my art teacher back home used to tell me that any good artist puts their heart and soul into their art - breathes life into it. But I never thought that could be meant literally [she laughs]

Comments

[encryptedlock]

Well. I got a photograph taken in town the other day, and it moves, too. I bet if you got the right materials and looked it up in the library, you could make a moving painting, too.

[eat_me_beat_me]

Seriously? Oh that would be awesome!

[a pause]

I doubt it'd work back at Paradisa, though/

[courageous_wit]

I could show you the spell needed to make the painting move. It would take a bit more to give it a voice, like the Fat Lady's portrait.

[encryptedlock]

Why not? Isn't it a magical castle, too?

[panicswitched]

They are the best paintings. I so want to keep one.

Nora: Filtered

[silentrunning]

[Someone else has discovered the fine art of class cutting...and has been noticing the graffiti. So the following is filtered to Nora.]

Hey... Did you do all the graffiti, or can one girl who is again minus her toad be of assistance?

[eat_me_beat_me]

[She stops, thinking]

Huh... you know you might be right. I just didn't know if it'd let me take it with me when it turned back into normal.

[eat_me_beat_me]

Really? Oh man that would be sweet!

[eat_me_beat_me]

Keep one? Hell, I want to make one!

Chell

[eat_me_beat_me]

[She laughs]

Do you really have to ask? And, hey, you can paint whatever the hell you want!

[courageous_wit]

And if you want to be sure the magic carries over, we can store it in my handbag. Everything I put in there while we were in Paradisa is still there, so it should work in reverse as well.

[originalcopy]

[Church literally hovers over her shoulder to see what she's doing.]

Hey, that's not bad.

Re: Chell

[silentrunning]

[Chell reads that message back and griiiiins.]

Will do!

[And then, hauling out her wand, she mutters the paint spell she'd picked up, and starts drawing with her wand on the stonework.]

Down with homework.

[There are other things too, pictures of cakes, cartoony caricatures of her professors...All sorts of goodies.]

[encryptedlock]

Well, that's true. But hey, maybe you could ask. Castle likes granting wishes, doesn't it?

[panicswitched]

If you figure out how to do it, let me know. Those things are amazing.

[eat_me_beat_me]

[She jumps, yelping in surprise]

Holy shit! You just scared the crap out of me!

[eat_me_beat_me]

At a cost [She snorts] But I think it's worth a shot.

[eat_me_beat_me]

Oh my god Hermione I think you just made my life!

Think we could fit two in there? I've got an awesome idea and if it works it would make the Gallery that much more badass.

[eat_me_beat_me]

What d'you want one of? I'll see what I can do.

[courageous_wit]

We absolutely could! I put a charm on it, and it should hold as many things as I need.

[panicswitched]

I like livin' on the edge. Surprise me.

[originalcopy]

Sorry! Sorry, my bad...

[He holds his hands out and gives her a sheepish grin. He sometimes forgot that he could actually scare people.]

[eat_me_beat_me]

[She's positively BEAMING]

So what I was thinking was doing two dragon paintings. One to keep in my room and one to put near the door in the gallery. That way if anything happens in the gallery and I'm in my room they could go between the two paintings.

[eat_me_beat_me]

Oooooh you sure you want me to do that?

[eat_me_beat_me]

[She waved a hand]

It's alright I'm just not used to people coming up behind me through the fucking floor

[courageous_wit]

Good idea. I'll work on it with you. There's a special room in Hogwarts where we'll have privacy.

[originalcopy]

[He laughs]

Well, what can I say... I'm talented.

[encryptedlock]

Exactly. Good luck?

[eat_me_beat_me]

Hey, thanks. If it works you'll see it at the gallery!

[eat_me_beat_me]

[She grins] The Room of Requirement?

[courageous_wit]

So you learned its name! I'm not surprised.

[eat_me_beat_me]

[She beams]

Where do you think Mark broadcast from last night?

[courageous_wit]

Oh, I didn't doubt you'd find it. I'm just impressed you learned what it was called.

[eat_me_beat_me]

[She smiles, clearly proud of herself and Mark]

Hey thanks! You know it's not too often someone says they're impressed with something we did.

[courageous_wit]

I didn't know about it until my fifth year, so it was very impressive to me that you found it and used it so fast.

[eat_me_beat_me]

[She laughs]

Maybe something knew that Mark needed a place to broadcast from.

[courageous_wit]

It was the castle. I know you're tired of hearing that because of Paradisa, but Hogwarts is different.

[eat_me_beat_me]

[She smiles] Yeah I figured that out pretty fast. The moving staircases are pretty awesome.

[courageous_wit]

They can be a bit tricky, but once you learn your way it's quite nice.

[eat_me_beat_me]

Oh you're telling me. I spent the first day lost as shit! [she laughs]

[courageous_wit]

Everyone spends their first day like that.

[eat_me_beat_me]

[She snorts]

I'm not surprised. It'd be pretty tough not to.