13 Years Ago...

Today is the thirteenth anniversary of the Battle of Hogwarts. Today we remember all those that lost their lives in order to do what was right. We remember their loyalty to Dumbledore and Harry. We remember their willingness to fight when it was easier and safer to stand aside. And most importantly, we remember their strength and their love.

"You think the dead we love ever truly leave us? You think that we don't recall them more clearly than ever in times of great trouble?"

Let those that perished that night and in the battles leading up to it stand as a reminder to us of what we should all strive to be.

It might seem odd or even silly to spend a day remembering the fictional dead, but as anyone who truly loved the series can easily tell you, these deaths impacted us as if we had known the characters in real life. They were our friends, our family, throughout the series. Harry Potter taught us about death and loss, but it also taught us about life and cherishing what we have.

"Do not pity the dead, Harry. Pity the living, and, above all, those who live without love."

And as Dumbledore so famously said...

"Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?"

It's real for us.

Growing Up With Harry

I'm sorry we haven't posted in a while. My mother has been in town and craziness always ensues with that occurs. I will attempt to make up for my absence by making a few posts this week (and continuing to work on the promised LEAKY CON CONTEST that will be posted here as well as on my youtube channel when the time comes, so keep an eye out for that!).

As a middle schooler picking up the first few books, I never really would have thought that this series would have impacted my life in such a major way. I discuss a bit of HP's impact in this video:

But there's much more to the story than that! I don't think I had a friend all through middle or high school that wasn't obsessed with Harry Potter. HP helped me make real life friends in addition to the friendships I forged through my forays online.

High school was a daunting prospect for me. Most of my eighth grade class was thrilled to be leaving and moving on to something “better”, but I was apprehensive. After the utter torment that was middle school, I wasn't sure what to expect from high school despite my parents' assurances that it would be the best time of my life (apparently their memories of high school were a little foggy). So when orientation rolled around, I sat in the corner completely silent, not knowing anyone because most of my eighth grade class went to public high schools or other private schools (though I wasn't exactly sad to see most of them go, my only friends were going elsewhere as well). I was attending yet another Catholic school after eight years at the Catholic elementary school. I literally don't think I said a word all through orientation until I saw the girl next to me taking notes in a HP notebook. I leaned over and simply said, “Nice notebook”. At first she looked apprehensive as if I were making fun of her, but then she smiled and we started a long conversation about the next book due out. We were friends throughout that year and a little after I transferred to a performing art school.

I discussed earlier about my friends who drew up complicated lunar charts to prove our algebra teacher was a werewolf. She was one of them. The other joined our HP crew a little later into the year after she stood up for me when someone shoved me into my locker and shouted “albino” at me. After she told them off, she spotted my Harry Potter quidditch magnets on my locker door and struck up another HP conversation.

Moving through the series, I found myself growing up with Harry. We faced “enemies” together (sure, his were bigger and badder than the kids at my school, but the were against us all the same, forcing us to be stronger than we thought possible and almost turning us into something we didn't want to be). We broke the rules together (him more frequently than I). We discovered and accepted our attraction to women together. We found love and suffered loss together. We went through all of adolescence's trials and more, and we survived.

Harry has brought so much to my life: an escape, countless friends, oodles of good times, a plethora of inside jokes, wonderful life lessons straight from the text and accompanied by other “gifts”, spirituality, self-confidence, self-acceptance, freedom, and countless others things. It has shaped who I have become (and that is most definitely not an understatement). He was always there for me, and I'll always be there with him.

Harry Potter Questionnaire Pt. 2 - Kat

So, I lied. I got inspired and had time before work tonight, so I got another post finished for you guys. So, here's my second post today (Brae's house post and part two of the questionnaire will be up sometime in the near future so I don't leave him too far behind).

13. Who would be your favorite teacher at Hogwarts?

I'd probably like Lupin for obvious reasons, but I'd also probably like McGonagall. I've always liked teachers that pushed me, if I felt I could really live up to their expectations. If I couldn't, I'd probably hate her with a passion that burned with the white hot intensity of a thousand suns. Flitwick always struck me as nice and fun, but his teaching style never seemed like it would suit me because it was too laid back. I might not hate Slughorn if I managed to get into the Slug Club. The only ones I really doubt I'd like are pretty obvious like Umbridge, Lockhart, Binns, Trelawney, etc. as well as Moody (I'd probably freak out in ever class when he yelled about how horrible and dangerous the world was) and Hagrid (who would probably be responsible in some way for my premature death by letting me handle a creature I so wasn't ready for).

14. What lesson would you enjoy the most?

Hm...I know which I would hate, but which I'd enjoy would depend on who was teaching and how skilled I'd actually end up being in that area. I'd HATE Herbology (because I hate being dirty and uncomfortable), Arithmancy (math...ugh!), Care of Magical Creatures (I'd probably spend the entire lesson running from something terrifying), History of Magic (*snore*), Divination (*double snore*), Muggle Studies (we're not that fascinating), and possibly Ancient Runes (though runes and divination do fascinate me in real life, the lessons never seemed particularly thrilling in the books). I'd probably like Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Transfiguration, and Potions.

15. Which position would you want if you played Quidditch?

I don't think I'd play quidditch or like flying much at all (I'm terrified of heights), but if I had to choose, I'd probably be a beater. I can't catch worth a darn, so that pretty much rules out all the other positions. Plus, it seems like a good outlet for aggression.

16. What are your favorite spells (or potions)?

Aguamenti! No, I'm kidding, but there is a hilarious story from RP behind that one (someone tried to drown someone else using this spell after freezing them with Petrificus Totalis. It was the single most hilarious moment in the history of RP). Or how about Feraverto because I often find myself in dire need of a water goblet but with a spare bird or rat lying around...?

For reals, though, I'd say the summoning charm because I'm that lazy (can we say “accio remote”, “accio double stuff”, and/or “accio hottie”?), the muggle repelling charm (because who doesn't want to get rid of those nasty muggles always hanging around?), or the pack and wizard space charms (because I often travel and hate packing and unpacking with a passion, especially when it comes to having to choose what to leave behind due to a limit of space).

17. What would your Patronus be?

It's boring, but it would probably be a cat. I've always had a real connection with cats (hence me letting people call me Kat despite my hatred of most nicknames I've been given through the years). My first real pet (that lasted for more than a few months) was a cat, and we had a very strong connection.

18. What would Amortentia smell like for you?

Sandalwood (my inner hippie/Pagan is coming out), chocolate (yes, I'm a girl), and lavender. Yes, I realize that together those would probably smell atrocious, but I've always wondered if you smell them all at once or separately.

19. What would your boggart be?

I'm a bit of a scaredy-cat to be honest, so I don't know. A giant spider is a real possibility (though I hate to admit I'm like Ron in any way). It would be difficult for it to turn into something to resemble my fear of heights, so that one might be out. Other than that, ghosts, ax murderers, and random other horror movie monsters rank high here.

20. Do you think you're like any of the characters? Which ones?

I really don't think that I am. I like to think I'm like Hermione (without being annoying) and Dumbledore so that I can be intelligent but still approachable, helpful, and loving. McGonagall wouldn't be bad either since I do have a love for rules and tend to push people to be the best they can.

In terms of looks, I'd say I'm more like (movie) Luna, (book) Narcissa, and/or (book) Fleur if only because of my hair and complexion.

21. How did you react when your Hogwarts letter didn't arrive when you turned eleven?

If I'd read the books then, I'd probably have been sad. Since I didn't pick up SS until I had already turned 12, I never had that build up of anticipation and the let-down of actually being a muggle. I do remember being pretty darn sad once I truly fell in love with the books that I couldn't just run off to Hogwarts. I am still holding out hope for Pigfarts, though, and I'm working on the rocket ship dilemma!

22. How do your friends/family react to your HP obsession?

My family is okay with it, for the most part. My dad even likes HP after listening to SS on tape during a fifteen hour car ride one summer (I fell asleep, but he never turned it off) and watching the movies with me (sometimes taking me to the midnight releases to see them). My sister will watch the movies with me and my dad, as will her husband. My brother is a fairly big fan, though he's nowhere near my obsession. He's read all the books, even the little ones like Beedle the Bard and Fantastic Beasts and seen all the movies. He was jealous when we went through the slideshow I made of Infinitus pictures, but that's about where it ends. He'd die laughing if I ever told him I listen to wizard rock, which I'm fairly sure he doesn't know exists. My mother hates the fact that I'm as obsessed as I am and takes every opportunity to try to talk me out of going to conventions, laughs at me when I mention HP, and generally thinks I'm too old to still be as involved in the fandom as I am and like a “children's book”.

For the most part, my friends are cool. Some don't like HP, but they tend to keep that quiet around me. The rest like it, but aren't as into it as Brae and I are (Merlin's beard, I love having a fellow Potterhead for a roommie!)

23. Do you have any inside jokes that relate to HP?

OMG! Yes! Well, I don't know if they'd classify as “inside jokes”, but we get weird looks when we use them, so I'm dubbing them “inside”. Brae and I attempt to incorporate “Anything off the trolley dears” and “Just what you wanted, actually” into just about every conversation. We'll also quote AVPM and AVPS at the drop of a hat. Oh, oh, oh! Brae just reminded me about “Finnigus Shamigan”. One night, we'd been up for hours watching HP and talking when one of us tried to say Seamus Finnigan, but it obviously came out wrong (ironically it might have been when making fun of his unclear speech in HBP when he attempts to say “Don't you dare talk about my mother like that” and it comes out “Donyoudaretalkaboumymodderlikedat”). The rest is history.

Also, freshman year of high school, my friends were just about as obsessed as I was, and we'd wait on my front porch for Dumbledore to either drop off Harry or a Hogwarts letter, developed intricate theories about how my algebra teacher was a werewolf (there were charts involved), and played quidditch in my backyard. Yes, we were 14...and it was awesome! I'm counting these because we sometimes still refer to them.

24. If you were at the store and saw Harry Potter buying whole milk, what would you do?

First, I'd probably be wondering why he was buying whole milk (bleck!). Then, I'd pinch myself. Once I was sure I wasn't dreaming, I'd probably direct him toward the Squirt.

If we're talking about Daniel Radcliffe, I'd probably just go about my business. The only interest I have in him is when he's playing Harry (often poorly).

If we're talking about Darren Criss, I'd absolutely die!