{JulyMP-Leh, India}A Victory for Good?[OPEN]

Esmeray and her 10 year old brother, Altun lazily made their way back down the steps to the Town Square as they devour their freshly baked flatbreads. It turned out going straight to the baker instead of a vender, had been worth it, although Esmeray had felt like she was going to pass out chasing her brother up the stairs of this thin dry aired mountain wizard town.

As they neared the town courtyard, the booming sounds of drums and horns seemed amplified by the stone building around them. A few stragglers ran pass them, to join the already over the swelled crowds, all attempting to see the rituals dances of the Karsha Gustor Festival performed below.

"We are missing it!" Announced her brother as if the notion was not already addressed by her when they left to full fill his demand of fresh bread fifteen mins ago. If it was up to Esmeray, she would have made him wait until after the event. Her Mother who let him skipped breakfast because he did not like the look of it, made her go with him. Further evidence that he had been spoiled beyond repair during the year she was away at Koldovstoretz.

Her brother grabbed her hand and attempted to pull her through the crowd. The rest of Esmeray’s family were all sitting on the roof-terrace. One of the best vantage points to watching the first yellow crested dancers of the Karsha Gustor Festival parade around in the large main town’s courtyard.  Esmeray did her best to follow her small, thin and nimble younger brother as he led her through gaps on the crowd that allowed for his size, yet not his full grown sisters.

After stepping on a few feet and almost toppling over an old witch, Esmeray told him to go on without her. She explained she would have to find her own way around or watch from here. Apparently Altun had been frustrated she had been slowing him down, for he did not argue. Instead he grabbed the extra flat bread she held in her hand and took off thought the crowd without a glance back.

“That loaf is for your sister!” she called back over the ritual drums and clanging chimes. She followed him with her eyes and made sure he got back to her parents. Both her mother and father seemed too busy alternating between watching the show while engaging in small amounts of conversation with a Ministry friend of her father to notice his return. For now her attention return to the show not wanting to miss more than her brothers excursion required. She had a good view here… maybe her parents wouldn’t be mad if she stayed to watch for a bit. She was not really in the mood to sit next to them.
 
Since she got back from Koldovstoretz she had not been as social with her family. Just before she left, she had finally confronted her ex-boyfriend @Konrad Lidström about her confusing feelings. Their breakup had left her heart shattered and seemingly in a love spell. Thoughts of Konrad had stayed with her when they broke up the previous year and now she finally admitted to herself that she was not over him....and maybe he was not a dumb stupid, un-loyal and non honorable boy that she thought he was. She was not sure what her parents would say or do if they found out about the talk at the lake. She glance back at them across the yard fearing her father's eyes were boring into hers reading her mind. She was relieved to find his attention only on the dancers. She pushed her hearts troubles back down, willing her eyes and mind to focus on what was in front of her, the festival.

A new set of dancers took the center. The women dressed in the brightest colors with turquoise stone head headpiece sat between their displayed hair forming two fans on each side. The look reminded Esmeray of a cobra and she wondered if that was the effect they were going for. The women moved their feet with exceptional grace. Sliding on the ground as if it was ice. Their precisely positioned hands where mesmerizing as they flicked back in forth with the beat. After their show the cobra-like women fade out of the circle and a parade of masked figures and a few animals decorated with ribbons and blankets now join the circle. She watches as a monk or priest allows some of the participants drink from a bowl on what looked to be a shrine or altar.

The witch swallowed finding her throat dry. The sight reminded her just how thirsty she was, due in part the dry mountain air, chasing after her brother and the bread she just finished. She turned and found her back to a bar, whose windows and doors were pulled open allowing the patrons view of the festival below. Esmeray walked up the stairs to the side entrance and was happy to find someone still behind the counter.

She waved at the Asian-Indian looking native wizard-barman and gave a simple motioned of drinking something invisible. She knew the sound of the drums, chimes and horns would likely make communication difficult if not already impossible with a language barrier.  With a flick of a wrist and some wandless magic a milky drink was in front of her. The sixteen year old witches plan was to down it and return to watch the event, but as soon as she swallowed her first gulp she realized that is was alcoholic.  Her father forbade alcohol consumption at home and their one small bar in their town mostly server foreigners or the town drunks. SHe had not had a sip of alcohol let alone a full glass. Yet  she had already swallowing a mouthful and found the warm feeling in the pit of her stomach pleasant. She examined the 2/3 of the remaining cup and debated. This might be the only chance I have to drink alcohol before I turn 17...

Esmeray practically jumped when she heard her name called, scertant she had been caught in the act.

@Livvy

For once, Maryana was going to be spending her summer outside of Russia. She'd been too poor to travel the world and see all the wonder of it. Now that she had a pension from this past year of educating the students of Koldovstoretz on the history of magic, she had a little extra saved up for her to spend her summer away in England. Her goal was to learn as much as she could about the history of magic there and bring it back to teach her students. On her way to England though, she'd decided to leave for vacation a little earlier than planned so she could make a detour to India. This would cut her time in England a little shorter, but it was worth it. She had enjoyed every moment of it she had been there.

She wished she had taken a girl friend with her or even tried to coax some of the professors she had worked with to go, but alas, Maryana went alone.

Of the whole event, she couldn't pinpoint one bad thing about it except for it was really hot. Even then, it wasn't too bad. When she had surrounded herself by the bodies of others and danced and paraded about to her heart's content, that was when she could notice the heat. She'd made some new "friends". At least, they were interesting people who were more than happy than hang around with her and talk. Many lonely souls managed to find one another and create their own group. She'd danced with quite a few cute guys, many whom she never expected to see again, but a little flirting never hurt. Maryana was careful not too spend too much of her money here, which is why she didn't buy too many snacks  and drinks from the vendors and restaurants, but helped herself to some she had brought with her instead. She'd even seen some old students of hers there. Some, she had talked to often and was familiar with. Others, she didn't know so well. There were some waves exchanged and other times, just a few words to check how their summer was going and what they had planned. Then they'd continue on to their own business.

When she found her supply of food and water for India was looking low, she made the exception of going into a nearby bar to get some food and drink before she partied a little more and then made her way on to England. She had no intentions of spending the night here. The hotels would all be full or too pricey since all the tourists were coming. She was going to live the cheap lifestyle she'd always known. She sat at a nearby table, one that had some space around it so she could everything around her rather than stepped or sat upon by those who were in attendance. She also wanted to be able to catch the glimpse of the bartender, or any worker for that matter, should she need another drink. She was in the middle of an unintentional bite when she noticed a young, dark-haired witch enter the bar and order herself a drink. Maryana immediately chewed faster and swallowed what she could as quick as possible so she could catch the attention of the student.

After one hurried gulp, she called out to @Aysoy Esmeray and offered her a toothy grin. She waved her over as she helped herself to a mouthful of water in an attempt to help the food go down easier. She noticed the girl's startled jump, but didn't think too much of it. When the girl approached her, Anya motioned towards an empty seat beside her. "Have a seat! Please! Have you been enjoying your summer so far? I've seen quite a few more Koldovstoretz students around here. Have you run into them yet?" She helped herself to another bite of her Indian cuisine while she gave the girl time to answer her questions.

The Koldvostorez sixth year glanced across the room a second after her name was called. In an  less crowded  section of the restaurant she found a familiar face. It was her new Professor for History of Magic, Nikolaeva and she was waving her over. History of Magic was Esmeray's worst subject, yet last year wasn’t that bad. Professor Nikolaeva had somehow made the most dullest subject in the wizarding world not as boring. Yet  Esmeray was not sure if she did all that well on her O.W.L.s and was dreading her parents reviewing her test results.

Esmeray took another look at her drink while she quickly tried to run over the best courses of action. She did not want her father to find out that she ordered a alcohol beverage, yet if she left the mostly full glass there the Professor might notice and ask about it. ALthough if she downed it the Professor would definitely notice. Her father might possibly guess too, especially if the unknown Tibetan Wizard liquor would greatly affect her. She decided to bring it with her to the professors table and explain the mix-up. It was an honest mistake, and no one need to know that she was actually thinking about drinking it.

“Merhaba, Professor Nikolaeva!” she loudly gave a Turkish greeting, as she crossed the room, then switched over to Russian. “You here for Karsha Gustor? I mean, are you enjoying it?”

She took the seat tentatively, worried that the teacher was going to talk to her about what she saw. She had expected her father had kept tabs on her through her Professors, but Professor Nikolaeva would not have been one she expected. She was to young and Esmeray could not see her running in the same circles of influential people her father kept. Still if she mentioned it to the wrong person, it would not bode well for Esmeray. Luckily the next statement seemed to be friendly enough and put the guilt-ridden girl mind more at ease.

“My summer? Yes, I guess.”  She said before the rest of her tensioned soon dissolved, as it was replaced with curiosity. She answered the next round of friendly questions as she looked around.  “No, I have not yet run into anyone yet. I was with my family.”

She wondered if Mats Balldrshóll or Liu Yin were here. It would be great if she could spend time with them outside of school. The thought that Konrad Lidström might also be attending slipped into her mind too, but she quickly dismissed it. Believing it was highly unlikely him and his brother could afford a port key here. 

When she turned back to her Professor, she noticed that she was taking a bite of food. Esmeray got an idea and pushed the cup of the alcoholic liquid towards the Professor. “It looks like you did not have any problems ordering. Do you speak Urdu or Hindi? I tried to order water, but I got this, and I don’t think it is rice milk. Do you think you can order me a water?” With any luck the professor would think she only took a sip at most.

She smiled kindly as she listened to Esmeray. The professor helped herself to the cup of water she had and sipped at it. The dish she ate had some extra spice in it, she could feel it burn. There was something about it though that was so irresistible that she couldn't stop eating the food! The more she ate, the more she craved it. The young woman (well, she thought she was young), folded her hands together and set them on the table just between her and her plate. She could feel them itching to pick up her fork and wanting to obey the urges of her stomach.

When her student told her of her unfortunate predicament, immediately Maryana felt sorry for the young Tigrova. It must be hard being in a country where she wasn't able to use magic to help her translate what was being said. Her cheeriness was shown when she chuckled softly, hoping she didn't offend the student as she shook her head in reply to her question. "The only language I know is Russian, though I've been picking up a couple of phrases since I've begun teaching at Koldovstoretz. I don't often use magic to my advantage," she was a muggleborn after all and was much more accustomed to the ways of muggle life. "But I decided to just this once. My whole summer actually, I'm using a translating charm. You're not of age yet to use it, are you?"

Her eyebrows furrowed together in a way that showed she pitied the young woman for not being able to use such a helpful spell. "Honestly, sometimes I think the Ministry isn't quite aware of the benefits their students could have by using magic at an earlier age. You didn't hear that from me," she lowered her voice and offered a joking wink as she spoke. "I'm using a translating charm. It's a little more advanced so it took some time to perfect. But I use the charm and I can hear everything in Russian. Depending on who I may be speaking to, my words, which I speak in Russian, are heard in their native tongue. I can hear accents quite clearly, but a stranger never has to know that I really don't know the language. It doesn't translate any writings unfortuneately. That would have helped me many times. I just use my magic again. One day soon, you will be able to use your magic without the restrictions and rules."

Without further prompting from Esmeray, she took it upon herself to see that the student got an appropriate drink. Maryana picked up Esmeray's glass as she caught the attention of one of the workers and waved him over. "May I please get a cup of water instead of this? She was given alcohol but my friend is much too young to be drinking this." The waiter apologized, nodded, and took the beverage before disappearing into the crowd.

"While he is getting your drink, we can sit and talk." Her Russian accent was thick and heavy through her words. "You have one more year left of school, correct? I've been trying to remember these sorts of things about my students but I'm still new and find that I get names mixed up on occasion. Which class is your favorite so far? Do you have any plans for when you graduate and what you'll be doing after school?" IT was just small talk, but Maryana truly wanted to know more about her students. She wished to connect with them in a way that helped her feel like she was a part of the school and made friends, no matter their ages. Of course, she was professional and had no ill intentions of being friendly with the students. Maryana had found that when she made those personal connections, the students' ability to focus in class increased, their grades improved, and they were much more willing to share with her about the happenings in their lives. It wasn't much, but seeing as she didn't quite fit in with the professors who were all ten years older than her with much more experience and teenagers who were ten years younger than her and often felt they knew everything, she was relieved for the opportunity to sit and talk with Esmeray.

The Tigrova was quite smart and she saw a lot of potential in her. Of course, she was older, so Anya didn't have to worry too much about her that she was doing her work and focusing in class. Truth be told, she was rather proud of the progress she had seen Esmeray make all throughout the year. History of Magic wasn't an easy class, but she hoped she was teaching in a way that she helped her students understand the material and maybe even peak their interest in the subject.

It was strange to watcher Professor Nikolaeva eat while she was not sitting at Koldovstoretz’s head table. It was not like she could not imagine Professors eating any wear else, but her professor looked like a normal tourist who was eating food, which looked and smelled quite different then anything in Koldovstoretz. By the way my Professor was eating it, it must be good. Well at least that was what Esmeray thought until her Professor put down her fork and folded her hands. Feared crept up the young witch's neck as she worried that the change in the older witch's actions meant there was going to be a harsh talk coming her way. Thankfully she started to talk about language issues and not started the sentence with an ‘I expected better from you…’ or something.

Still the question regarding Esmeray’s age came up, which did make her feel a bit guilty while she answered,  “No. I can’t use magic yet.  I’m just Sixteen.” Under the Professor furrowed brows, the Turkish witch tried to look relaxed and as innocent as possible.  With the next few words Esmeray start to let go of her worries and felt like she was in the clear or at least escaped any sort of trouble for now.

She could not believe that her Professor was mentioning that students would benefit from the use of underage magic. Esmeray was nearly bouncing in her seat.  “I know right!?! I mean it is not like something magically happens to us at seventeen. Right? Instead they teach us something, send us home and then tell us not to use it when we need it. It is ridiculous.”

Yet apparently the Professor was meaning something way more practical and usable in the moment. “A Translating Charm? Oh that is interesting.” Yet the girls words contradict how she felt, a tad bit deflated. Of every spell she wanted to break the underage rules with…. A language spell was not one of them. Yet she did not want to disappoint her Professor, who she knew she might have another few years with. So she tried to add a smile to her face when she said.  “I could see how that would be useful to use. Especially here.” She ended it with a shrug. Well other then that idea, she had thought her Professor Nikolaeva was kinda cool, for Kolbovstorez Professors.

“Thank you… Sure. No problem. ” She fidgets in her seat a little while she thanked her professor in Turkish, before switching back to her Russian. “Well, I have two… I am going into sixth and then I still have seventh year. I think History of Magic is great and all… but I kinda prefer classes that get me outside… something that is more of a challenge or a competition. But compared to our old History Professor you are way better. You made things a lot more interesting. At least it is not all reading and writing endless papers on ancient battles and revolts. Oh, AND I actually used one of the tricks you taught us the goblins used during their rebellion in my Dueling class. I totally freaked-out the girl. It was great!”

“Plans? Well My parents expect me to assist my mother with the company until I get married. I just... I mean I just can't stand record keeping and inventory counting. I would be trapped inside all the time…” The girl slumped on the table as if she was experiencing the trials and tribulations of the job just thinking about it. Propping her head up on her hand she glanced out the window and spoke as if trying to see the future in the Indian Mountain’s sky. "I thought I could get a job in the Turkish Ministry, like something with creatures, or maybe work with and study wild dragons, but…” she gave a sigh and turned back to her teacher. “My parents would not let me do something that dangerous. After I am married I don’t think I could either.”

She paused for  a second, before remembering something and with it noticily cheered up. “MY father DID agreed to send me to Brazil! I’m attending the Curse class and the quidditch camp! He even ordered me a broom. No leaves. Weird ha? I am so excited. There will be real players there from the Iron Bellies and everything..  Man, It would be awesome to play for a living. Have you ever tried to fly on a broom before?”