Desperate times calls for desperate measures(alina

[Delwyn Dumbledore]

From the stories he had been told after Circie's third year at Hogwarts about the Defense Against the Dark Arts classes he had really been looking forward to his first year and finally being able to be apart of one of these lessons. Now adays though he was just regretting the lessons. How could his great-uncle go from hiring two really great Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers to hiring a very stupid, impractical, overprotective one?

The eleven year old Gryffindor sat at a table with a couple of Defense Against the Dark Arts books that hadn't been on the first year's school supply lists. There was also an ink well, a roll of parchment, and a quill. As he read his way through the books he muttered some of the spells as he wrote them down on the parchment and what those spells were meant to do. He was pretty sure that Circie and his Grandfather would help him to learn them when they found out how 'professor' Umbridge was teaching them.

When he had finshed flipping through the last book he had out on the table he slid his bit of parchment into his nearby rucksac, incase Umbridge decided to enter the library and came across his list of spells. He then gathered up the books he had and out and put them back upon the shelves. With the books put away he grabbed more until he could only just see over the top of them. As he made his way over to the tqble he had been working at he bumped into someone or thing that knocked the books out of his hands and sent him to the floor. It wasn't until he started gathering the books off of the ground that he realised that he had bumped into a person.

"I'm so sorry. Are you alright?"

[alina]

Alina sat silently in the library, Tino informing her that a boy from their Defense class was sitting across from them. She just nodded a little as she ran her fingers over the braille. This professor was teaching them so differently from the others, only giving them reading lessons. That was all well and good for the other kids, they had the use of their eyes. But Alina didn't have it so easy, she had to use her hands and her fingertips were starting to feel like the skin was rubbing off of them. So she reached a paragraph break as the other boy stood up and sat there for a moment, massaging her aching fingers. It was just then that the boy bumped into her, sending he forward suddenly and knocking Tino off her shoulder. He squawked in surprise and landed on the book, fluttering his wings a little. When Delwyn apologized, she lift her head a little and smiled kindly.

"I'm alright. I can't guarantee Tino's going to warm up to you any time soon, though."

The bird's feathers were puffed up angrily and his beak was open in an angry hiss. But the Cockatiel calmed down as she set her hand down for him to step onto, then climbed up the sleeve of her robe to her shoulder, where he nestled in, still glaring up at Delwyn. Alina turned slightly towards Delwyn's voice and held her hand out in his general direction.

"I'm Alina."

[Delwyn Dumbledore]

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He had a look at the bird who looked quite mad at him. He assumed that this white and yellow bird was the Tino she was referring to. In a way he really wished he had a cracker in the pocket of his pants. He was sort of realieved though when the girl put her hand on the ground and the bird hopped into it. At least now he didn’t have to worry about being attacked by an angry ball of feathers anymore.

“I’m Alina.”

He smiled as he finished stacking the books that he had dropped. Now he knew why she seemed so familiar. She was in his year and had been sorted into Hufflepuff. He hadn’t noticed how unresponsive her eyes had been during the ceremony. But then again he had been sitting down at the Gryffindor table the first time that he had seen her. He took her hand and shook it.

“My name’s Delwyn. What do you think of the Defense Against the Dark Arts classes? To be honest their nothing like what my sister told me they would be like.”

[/ul]

OUTFIT!

[alina]

Tino watched the boy and ruffled his feathers a little, settling down on Alina's shoulder. The bird recognized the young Gryffindor from the sorting ceremony. He was a first year like Alina, so he was just as lost as she was when it came to stuff like this. Tino watched as they shook hands and Alina smiled as Delwyn introduced himself, remembering the name.

"Delwyn? You were in the sorting ceremony this year, weren't you? A Gryffindor?"

Tino had whispered a few things to her about the people in the ceremony, giving her descriptions of them. But since he was more than a little annoyed at him during their current conversation, Alina had to remember. The picture she managed to conjure up in her mind was pretty close to his real face. Then he asked about the DADA class and she frowned a little, rubbing her fingers again.

"I don't like it. I'm not really learning as much as I'd like to. I was hoping I'd be allowed to practice the spells. That's how I learn best, I get a feel for the magic. But all I have is sore fingers."

She held her hand out palm up, showing him her fingertips. They were bright red, nearly rubbed raw from all the reading they'd been assigned.

"I usually love reading, but there's so much here that I don't know what to do. It was bad enough with the homework we were given in the other classes, but with this one I don't even have a break to practice the spells."

[Delwyn Dumbledore]

He watched as ‘Tino’ ruffled its feathers while it was on the girls shoulder. Simply from the fact that her eyes didn’t seem to respond to her surroundings he guessed that she was blind.

"Delwyn? You were in the sorting ceremony this year, weren't you? A Gryffindor?”

He nodded and remembered his guess about her being blind.

“Yeah, I was and I am a Gryffindor. My full name is Delwyn Dumbledore.”[/color][/center]

He saw her frown at the mention of the Defense against the Dark Arts classes and it actually made him feel sorry for bringing up the topic of one of the classes that he couldn’t wait to attend Hogwarts for. There was no doubt in his mind that ‘Professor’ Umbridge’s class was lowering his excitement about the school.

"I don't like it. I'm not really learning as much as I'd like to. I was hoping I'd be allowed to practice the spells. That's how I learn best, I get a feel for the magic. But all I have is sore fingers.”

His smile slipped a bit. The sore fingers and the rubbing of them just added to his prediction of her being blind. It was interesting though how she managed to get around without one of the various bits of equipment that blind muggles used.

“I usually love reading, but there's so much here that I don't know what to do. It was bad enough with the homework we were given in the other classes, but with this one I don't even have a break to practice the spells.”

He nodded with a grim look on his face.

“I’ve been looking forward to attending Hogwarts ever since my sister started to attend school here. When I had asked her about the school she had told me a lot about the classes and right now I feel like Umbridge is letting Un- Professor Dumbledore’s school down.”

[alina]

She lowered her head a little as he gave his name. Dumbledore? So he was related to the headmaster? That was interesting, but she wasn't really awed at it. He wasn't his uncle, she shouldn't treat him like he was. So she just took his name to mind and lift her head, listening as he described his feelings about attending the school. She nodded a little in agreement and sighed, lifting her head.

"Yeah, I was pretty excited too. Mom and dad told me a lot about the school, kept talking about how much fun it was. The defense classes were their favorites too. But this woman, I don't know what her problem is. It's like she doesn't even care."

She closed the book and shook her head a little.

"I just wish there was some way I could practice. I need to get a feel for the magic, feel how it moves through my wand."

She took her wand out of her pocket and ran her hand over the soft cherry wood. Tino lift his head and his feather crest lift a little in interest. He turned his beak to her ear and whispered to her, telling her there was a book she could levitate if she wanted. She smiled a little and stroked his breast feathers, deciding not to do the spell. She had levitation down pat, she didn't need to practice.

[Delwyn Dumbledore]

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He slid his wand out of his belt loop when she had spoken. He was pretty sure that Umbridge didn’t care about how many times they were hit with hexes or curses. Just as long as the ‘kids’ learnt something and she could punish them for something. With his wand pointed at the books he focused hard before speaking.

“Wingardium leviosa!”

Instead of levitating into the air the books stayed in their place. It was a fail dot com of failures for him. Curse having a sturdy wand! He knew the incantation for the charm his wand just wouldn’t perform it! That was one of the things he didn’t like about his wand. He could know the incantation, but it took awhile to actually master the spell.

"I just wish there was some way I could practice. I need to get a feel for the magic, feel how it moves through my wand."

He smiled as he remembered the ‘illegal’ group that his sister had told him about. What was it called again...? Dumbledore’s Army! That’s it![/color] He looked into the near-by rows, checking to see that Umbridge wasn’t around to force the information about the DA out of him. After all, his sister had told him all about it. Perhaps he should tell this Hufflepuff about it... after all she did want to practice the actuall practical side of Defense Against the Dark Arts, and their would be no better way to learn than from Harry Potter himself.

“Well, there’s this group that my sister’s trying to get me into run by Harry Potter that does just that. They call it Dumbledore’s Army or DA for short. I can see if she can get you in if you want...”

[/ul]

[alina]

She sighed a little and lift her head slightly as he cast levitation on something, but it obviously didn't work, as he made a sound of frustration. She rubbed her fingers a little and sighed as the muscles stopped hurting. Her fingertips were still red, but there was very little she could do about that now. She'd have to go to the nurse and get something for that. She mentioned wanting to practice and she could almost hear him thinking about something, lifting her head a little in anticipation of what he wanted to say. He started talking low and she leaned in a little, listening to him. He mentioned Dumbledore's Army and she grinned a little.

"You mean he'll teach us how to do the spells?"

There was a bright ray of hope in her voice. If she could get into a place that would help them learn the spells, then she would jump in with both feet. She nodded in excitement, reaching out and taking his arm.

"Please, I'll do anything for the chance to really learn."

She had to struggle a little to keep her voice in a whisper, she was so excited, but she managed to do so as she spoke to him.

[Delwyn Dumbledore]

The eleven year old boy leaned against one of the bookshelves end's as he awaited his response about Dumbledore's Army. Had he trusted the right person? Would she tell other people who would tell Umbridge ehat they were up to? Perhaps he should have asked if she could keep a secret before he had told her. Yup, he definatly should have asked before he told her.

"You mean he'll teach us to do the spells?"

He smiled mainly with the right side of his mouth as she asked that. She seemed really excited about the DA and he felt like, for once he had jumped into the right thing without thinking.

"If by he you mean Harry Potter, then yes."

He felt her grab his arm and his heart pounded faster. Of course he too was looking forward to the DA and he was rather excited that if Alina joined then he wouldn't be theonly first year at the meetings. He was also excited because now he had someone he could talk to about it that wasn't his sister.

"Please, I'd do anything to really learn."

For some reason Del found himself laughing his head off at her need to learn the practical side of Defence Against the Dark Arts.

"Alright, alright. I'll talk to my sisterand see if she could get you in. Just don't tell anyoneabout the meetings that would go and tell Umbridge what we're doing, kay?"

[alina]

She grinned widely as he confirmed they were going to be taught real spells. It was the best thing she'd heard since coming to this school. He laughed and her smile faded a little. Was her need to learn really that odd? She just wanted to be as good at the spells as the other kids in school. But he started speaking and promised to talk to his sister. She smiled and nodded a bit, but was still put off a little by his laughter. But she swallowed a little and lift her head to talk to him.

"I promise. I don't really have anyone to tell, anyway. I haven't had much of a chance to make any friends since coming here."

She lowered her head a little, biting her lip. But after a moment, she lift her head again.

"Do you think we could be friends?"

[Delwyn Dumbledore]

"I promise. I don't really have anyone to tell, anyways. I haven't really made any friends here yet."

He found it strange that his fellow first year hadn't made any friends yet as he himself had already became friends with one of his sister's best friend's, Bethany. But then again he'd be in the same boat as her had he not had a sister who was already attebding the school.

"Do you wabt to be friends?"

He smiled and wrapped an arm around her shoulders as he curtly tried to avoid any form of attacks from her seeing eye cokatiel. This embrace was more of a comradly one.

"Of course I will be!"

He withdrew his arm from her shoulders as his mind flew ahead to the future. If Umbridge tried anything 'funny' he'd make her life a living hell and he was quite sure that his sister would do the same thing.

It was rather strange though that an event as traumatising as seeing your parents being murdered in front of your eyes, would actually draw a pair of siblings even closer than they had been. But then again if that event hadn't taken place then they would be extreemly far apart now that they had or was begining to enter puberty. He would make his parents proud though by giving these practical Defense Against the Dark Arts classes and becoming the best duelist he could be.