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The Daily Prophet

Issue 9

Hello everyone and welcome to the final issue of The Daily Prophet for this season. I sincerely apologise for the delay, and you may also notice that it's a little shorter than usual—as the finals fall upon real life things like reporting in schools, I'm going to go ahead and say I hope you'll understand :') Thank you to each and every one of you who made these issues possible; it is your enthusiasm and participation that has us smiling each issue!

I'd like to take the time now to thank my partner in crime, Lily, who not only helped put this issue together (and dang that girl has got formatting down pat already! Super impressed), but who has continuously written articles and encouraged me to keep going. Without her, this newspaper would have way fewer issues... each probably out in 2030 going by my schedule :') Thank you, Lily!

We hope you like this issue, and as always, any input is welcome for forthcoming seasons!

Xx

Link: https:// docs. google. com/ document/d/197HngrZ-rB76WxGN7aA65YrvzCnsM2WarTfzk3eKC1E/edit?usp=sharing


WELCOME ADDITIONS AND TEARY FAREWELLS

The final regular rounds of the season have brought both heartbreak and excitement to many members of the Quidditch League, from moderators to players, judges to reserves. An announcement came early on last fortnight that one of our beloved moderators, and the very founder of the Quidditch League, will be stepping down to focus on real life, particularly the very exciting news of a pregnancy! We can see in 2036 a potential new moderator already *winks.* We wish Ashleigh (Fire the Canon) all the very best with her new little witch or wizard, and can safely say that she will be missed.

With the bittersweet comes something nice for players, judges, and propheteers, who, if they have completed a full season (for players, that means all thirteen regular rounds but not finals), will now have the opportunity to apply for moderator. The job is both rewarding and challenging at times, and next season, will require full time judging commitments as well. We're looking for dedicated people who would like to contribute to the forum which is six seasons in the making; if you feel you're up to the task, please apply to the Quidditch League account ASAP and make your mark! And no, in case the Halloween vibes are still floating your way, this is most definitely a treat, not a trick muahahaha.

This also marks the last issue for this season. We'd like to thank you all for your contributions and readership, and we wish you all the very best with everything, both ongoing rounds and in real life.

Finally, we'd like to congratulate our latest JP winners for Rounds 11 and 12: The Lady Rogue with her story as the seventh month dies, and MoonytheMarauder1 with her story Fighting to Find Himself.


THEY'RE WANDERFUL: THE WIGTOWN WANDERERS

Hello everyone, you all know who this is by now. That's right, it's me, Tigger, here with another interview (and awfully good puns hehe).

Last week, I ventured into the Wanderer's territory in an attempt to discover their secrets of success.

Here are the Season 6 Wigtown Wanderers:

CAPTAIN: CUtopia (Carmen)

KEEPER: silently-at-night (Lynne)

CHASER 1: Dark Angel Of Sorrow Returns (Angel)

CHASER 2: Aya Diefair (Aya)

CHASER 3: The Crownprincess Bride (Princess)

BEATER 1: VanillaAshes (Ash)

BEATER 2: DinoDina (Dina)

SEEKER: brokenbottleaurora (Bailey)

Make sure you check out the new, limited-edition Wanderer's lipstick: Bludger Black. It is available in all good beauty shops from November, including Madam Primpernelle's.

How do you feel about having your BYE this round, and more importantly, about Ron Weasley? Would you have been his friend at school, or gone the way of Malfoy?

Carmen: Coincidentally, the BYE happened at a good time for me—due to an accident I couldn't use my left arm for a week and was glad we didn't have to worry about reserves and stuff.

Hm… Idk, I think I would have been neutral to Ron. He can be a good friend but also a jerk, so I would just stay friendly.

Lynne: The BYE round was a huge relief (my broom needed maintenance), but I was sad to miss this opportunity to write about Ron—not that I don't write about him whenever I got the chance anyway. I'm just so glad this round was created. Ron deserves all the love in the world, not only because of his countless virtues, but because he is human, he has flaws, and yet, in the end, he always makes the right call. How many of us can say the same? So yes, I admire him for it, and truly believe his heart is in the right place, that's why I've always thought Harry and Hermione are so lucky to have him. I'm not sure I'd be able to befriend him—I'm just so shy—but I really hope so!

Angel: It's definitely a breather for me, gave me time to get other things done! As for Ron, I can't say he's my favorite guy in the world (used to be one I hated), but I will admit and proudly say he's grown on me *winks* I won't be Malfoy and bully him, but we'd only get close if I was around him a lot.

Aya: The BYE round couldn't have come at a better time. Being so close to the end, for me, my ideas for stories start to get burnt out, so having a break to cool my creative mode a little bit really helped me recharge and prepare to finish out the season strongly.

Ron, what can I say, he wouldn't be the sort I'd willingly hang out with, but I would never be an outright bully to anyone. He has a loud personality, and I am the quiet sort. We may be acquaintances at best, maybe.

Ash: The BYE is definitely at a good time for me. I'm at a very busy point in my life and barely managed last round (sorry judges if it was awful). If we hadn't had BYE this round, I might not have managed to continue to the end! So perfect timing for my life to calm down slightly and it allows me to recharge.

I'm not overly fond of Ron at all. I'd never be a Malfoy—couldn't bully any—but doubt I'd ever be Ron's friend. He'd just be somebody I went school with. I'm glad I'm not having to write him! That would have been a challenge and a half!

Bailey: The BYE fell at a really good time for me. I've been stalled on a couple of other fics, so I've enjoyed getting a chance to work through those blocks and make some progress. But, though I've enjoyed the time off, I'm ready to get back to the field of competition. And I think I would have been friendly acquaintances with Ron, but I don't know that we would have been friends, per se. I don't think I could have gotten past the terrible table manners or, more importantly, his tendency for self-centeredness.

The Wanderers won last season. How are you feeling about your chances this season, and more importantly, will it mean another lipstick edition added to your collection?

Carmen: Our win last season was really surprising to me because we were having a bunch of struggles back then. This season has gone real smooth mostly, OG Wanderers, almost-OGs and new Wanderers are blending well and I think we definitely will be in the position to weigh in on the fight for the title. It would be awesome if we come out reclaiming the title, but if we don't, I still would feel like we played real good this season. I'm proud of my Wanderers already, everything else is icing.

A few new lipstick editions are definitely planned—one will be called Bludger Black, inspired by the Bludger that hit me while training and landed me at St. Mungo's ER.

Lynne: Everyone on this team is so amazing, talented, and dedicated that I feel so blessed, and of course I believe we have good chance, and I know we'll do our best, especially since we're playing great teams that are just as talented, so it'll be challenging, interesting, and fun!

Angel: I was actually on another team last season, and heavily debated if I'd return. It took some coaxing from a certain Chaser on our team, but I joined up. I'm so glad I did! My teammates, old and new, are just amazing and godsends. Even with stellar competition, I think that we definitely have a shot at the title this season, and I know that no matter what, the Wigtown Wanderers did the best we could and kicked butt! As for the lipstick, you'll have to speak to our captain. *winks*

Aya: This year has been very different to when I came on the team last year experience wise—all positive, though! Having great team chemistry and support has really helped us along to where we are now this year, and I fully believe it was what helped us claim victory last year. So, I am confident we are in a good place, but we still have a few great teams in the ranks to face off against. Lipstick wise, you'd have to wait and see. Who knows? We may be promoting a new shade right under your noses.

Ash: I was around for a good portion of last year and was so pleased when the team made it to the finals and then won! It was well deserved with the hard work. I was blessed to have been part of the team! I think we are more prepared this year and have a more settled team and schedule. There is so much talent in other teams so it is sure to be close. I'm not going to give any spoilers about lipsticks *looks at Carmen's answer* hehe.

Bailey: This is my first season at QL, and I've only been here for a few rounds at that. However, this team has a great sense of camaraderie, an incredible amount of creativity and a terrific work ethic, which I think really puts the odds in our favour. I believe in us. We believe in us. Now we've just got to show everyone else why.

If you could bring one Muggle item into the world of Harry Potter, what would it be and why?

Carmen: A laptop or my phone because I'm not fond of writing long stuff by hand?

Lynne: An MP3 player or anything like that. I just love listening to music too much *smiles*

Angel: I gotta have my phone or laptop. Imagine all the selfies I could get! Or the stories I could write from real experience in the magical world.

Aya: Oh gez, umm… Maybe Muggle office supplies. I know that is more than 1 thing, but I love office supplies, and in school I always had great use for pens, pencils, sticky notes, notepads, and highlighters. Parchment and ink seems so tedious and high maintenance, ya know? Either that or a thermos of coffee that somehow refills itself? I live on the stuff.

Ash: To parrot Bailey, I agree with the bigger range of sports! There are so many amazing sports they could play, even if they decided to make them more 'magical' like they did with chess. I think it would make the school a lot more diverse. Play some football, tennis, rounders, dodgeball, frisbee!

Bailey: A baseball glove/baseball. Hogwarts is missing any form of team sporting event other than Quidditch, and I think that's a real shame. Baseball allows for a lot of players on each team, it's perfect for the little bits of warm weather at the beginning and end of the school year, and I think it could be adapted for magical rules pretty well. Plus, if all else fails, you can always just play a relaxing game of catch with your friends.


UMBRIDGE RECAPTURED! FUDGE THE FICKLE IN HOT WATER

Earlier this year, we brought you the harrowing news that disgraced former Minister for Wizarding Education and convict, Ms Dolores Umbridge, escaped from Azkaban. Believed to be highly dangerous and not of a sound mind, Ms Umbridge led Aurors and reporters alike on a wild dragon chase. Fortunately, after running afoul of a tribe of centaurs and causing havoc in the textile industry, the 'woman in pink' was found hiding in another former Ministry worker's home.

At just after 7pm last night, Aurors stormed the home of ex-Minister for Magic, Mr Cornelius Fudge's Yorkshire cottage. It took several Aurors to apprehend Ms Umbridge, using Transfiguration to turn the woman into a more easily-caught amphibian.

"We heard several shrieks and bangs; I thought Mr Fudge had accidentally invited another Banshee into his home," one neighbour commented on the arrest. "It wasn't until we saw a group of Aurors holding a small glass carrier that we realised that it had simply been a toad escaping. Very odd indeed."

Mr Fudge was also taken into custody for questioning, believed to have been harbouring Ms Umbridge for quite a few months. He of course denies the charges, including the alleged use of his power and knowledge as a past Minister to help the convict escape. Unfortunately, he is now resting in St Mungos after fainting upon arrest, delaying investigation into the possibility that he was Imperiused into helping Ms Umbridge.

Claims from Fudge's ex-wife, Cordelia, support the possibility that Ms Umbridge had taken over the abode. "When I left my husband for being such a fool over the return of You-Know-Who, our home was decorated tastefully. I was appalled when I was told that tacky lace and china cat plates had replaced my great-grandfather's artworks," she said. "Cornelius has always been a gullible fool, so it doesn't surprise me in the least that this woman has gotten her claws into him yet again."

The arrest has shocked only some of the community, however, with rumours still rife that Mr Fudge was, in fact, a Death Eater. We've been able to neither prove (with the exception of disgraced ex-reporter Rita Skeeter) or disprove this theory.

Mr Fudge will be kept for questioning once given a clean bill of health, whilst Ms Umbridge may be facing a punishment used before the war; in this case, it may be difficult as one does need a soul for the Kiss to be effective. A trial next March will decide her fate.


WIMBOURNE IS ABUZZ: THE WASPS ARE BACK!

Last week, I also had the pleasure of heading to Wimbourne. It was here that I was lucky enough to catch up with the Wimbourne Wasps.

Here are the Season 6 Wimbourne Wasps:

CAPTAIN: Hope (DaughteroftheOneTrueKing)

KEEPER: Ash (AshesGleamAndGlow)

CHASER 1: TQA (TheQuietAwakening)

CHASER 2: Carol (Carolare Scarletus)

CHASER 3: Chels (tonberrys)

BEATER 1: Sheryl (saku642734)

BEATER 2: Lun (Lun27)

SEEKER: Lily (Lily MJ Fae)

In keeping with our last interview for this year, we had a marvellous time getting to know the Wasps and their plans for this competition.

How do you feel about having your BYE this round? Which Trick or Treat would you have chosen?

Hope: I'm glad of a break, I've had a lot of things going on lately and am glad of the free time to devote to them. I'm not sure what I would have chosen, but I hope it would have been good!

Ash: I'm very grateful it's this round, because I've been having a hard time writing recently. If I were to pick one, I'd probably go with trick, for the same reason as Chels.

TQA: Having our BYE at the end does create much more uncertainty for us to make finals, but I think it has been a very needed break. With University and other life stresses, it has been such a relief to have some time not to worry about the next story I'm going to write. While this competition has been really fun and it was great to get to write every round and not break the stride, it is also a bit taxing when combined with everything else. For the question of trick-or-treat, I really have no idea! I am a very indecisive person, so I would have probably agreed with whatever the rest of the group decided.

Carol: Incredibly happy for the break! Between work and the competition, I haven't had the time to write for any of my WIP's! I'm in the middle of finding an apartment and sorting out a couple of things at home. It can be very stressful at times, but somehow I make it work. *smiles*

Chels: I actually think I liked having the break at the end. I definitely prefer for it to be near the end because I'm often burning out by this point, but the very last round actually ended up being interesting timing. I kept my momentum up throughout the rounds, then I can just collapse here at the end and wait for it all to resolve. As for trick vs. treat… I get decision paralysis, so I'm not really sure what I would have picked. As a group, I would have deferred to anyone who had strong preferences, but if it was individual, I might pick trick. Seems like it could have fun prompts in there.

Sheryl: A break is very nice right about now; I was close to burning out, and my last couple of fics were posted last minute. I probably would have chosen something from a treat box, like a payday, those are great.

Lily: I always struggled the most with the last round anyway, especially when it was the "write whatever you want" prompts. I also usually have run out of steam at this point, so I'm a bit thankful to not have to be writing. I likely would have chosen the treat box.

Lun: Having the last round as our BYE round is quite the relief actually. The competition is quite long and in the beginning I already knew I wouldn't have a lot of time at the end of it so I was quite happy about that.

With your BYE being now, how do you feel about your chances of making the finals?

Hope: It depends on how a couple other teams pull through. Someone else could pull an amazing round and then bam, bye bye Wasps. I'm confident and hopeful we'll make it.

Ash: I don't know, I think we've got a chance. Honestly, it'd be great if we got in, but I'm just here to have fun and practice writing fanfics hahahaha!

TQA: It's a close race for these last few spots into the finals! Everyone has done such a good job and I am so proud of my team either way. Our place is quite uncertain because of our BYE in the last round, but I have had a lot of fun writing and feel that I have grown so much in my abilities, not to mention gaining an awesome group of supportive friends.

Carol: I hope we pull through! I don't know about the other teams, but we have a solid friendship and working with my teammates has been such a blast this entire year! *grins* (I joined a little later, but these girls are my best friends!)

Chels: It's hard to say. It depends so much on how Rounds 12 & 13 go; rankings can mix up pretty dramatically in a short period of time. As of right now, I think it's possible but not a guarantee. We shall see!

Sheryl: I think it's a 50/50 shot, just depends on if we win and another team loses round 12.

Lun: I think we actually have a good chance to make it to the finals. But even if we don't, I am happy to have been a part of this. I think it's a little sad that some players didn't want to write until the end probably because their team doesn't have a chance to make it to finals anymore.

Lily: I think we have a decent shot, but it's gonna be close.

Hogwarts is having a Halloween Ball, with just about every student and member of staff invited. What costume would you wear, and what would some of your favourite characters be wearing?

Hope: I would dress as a devil with sparkly horns and an iron pitchfork. Something different. My favorite character is Luna, and I think she would dress up as

Ash: Well, it depends on if it's a masquerade ball or not. Masquerade, obviously I'd be some sort of Fae creature! If not, well, probably Red Riding Hood, basket and all. Of course, Severus Snape would likely just be himself, why must he dress up for such frivolous affairs, after all?

Carol: I'd love to say a pair of nice PJ's and my clown shoes (Slippers I got for Christmas, LOL) But, if I was being honest with myself and I wanted to make an impression, a nice flowy dress and flats. Curly hair and simple makeup. *smiles* Probably change my haircolor for the occasion and spike the punch!!

Chels: Hmmm. Dressing up in my Harry Potter robes doesn't have quite the same effect at Hogwarts, so I would probably wear my Daenerys Targaryen outfit and carry around my stuffed dragon babies. Or real dragon babies. My favorite character is Regulus, and I don't imagine him to be the 'dress up for Halloween sort,' though it is an amusing mental image.

Sheryl: I usually just wear black pants, a white shirt, and a panda hat. Been doing it for years. But I think the best thing ever would be to dress up as a mini Snape and follow him around all night, I can't picture him in a costume so we would be matching. Maybe I can rope Hermione into doing the same, then there would be two. There is also the possibility of getting more on board. Snape would have an army of mini Snapes following him around.

Lun: I'm lazy when it comes to costumes *grins* I'd dress up as a basic cat. But if I could just conjure me a costume, I'd dress up as LeeLoo from The 5th ELement, bragging to everyone with my Multipass. I think Minerva McGonagall would dress up as Snape to make him smile just once in his life.

Lily: I love dressing up. For Halloween this year, I'm going as Howl Pendragon, so perhaps that would be my costume. Or else I would likely wear my Renaissance costume for the fun of it.


HIP HIP HOORAY FOR THE MUGGLE WAY!

You know by now that we don't own The Prophet or anything in the world of Harry Potter.

Nevertheless, it is only right to acknowledge our many magical and Muggle resources. These resources include J. K. Rowling, the Potter Wiki, Giphy.com, FanFiction, and Google Docs. Without them, this issue of The Daily Prophet would not exist. Thank you!

A big thank you to Lily Caia for helping put this issue together!

If you have any design queries, would like help setting up a similar magazine/newspaper, or would like to help out with the creation of a brand new design for next season (all ideas are welcome), please contact Tigger or the Quidditch League account (particularly for the last). Please also contact the official count for any position queries, suggestions, or advertisement enquiries: whilst Season 6 is still underway, there is no such thing as being too prepared!


MACKLED MALACLAW MALADY MUTINY: THE IRIDESCENT FAIRY FALLS

Since its opening just six months after the Second Wizarding War ended, the Iridescent Fairy has always been a tremendous success! Alas, as with all high class, successful restaurants—or simply people, as the owner Lavender Brown might argue —there will be a lot more scrutiny regarding things such as food quality, personnel, service, and hygiene. It is normal, and up until now, has never been a problem for this establishment which has some of the highest standards. However, just three days ago, there has been an uproar of marvelous indignation, unseen before in gastronomy!

The Iridescent Fairy had just recently celebrated their twentieth anniversary and in the spirit of festivities, Madam Brown decided that the restaurant would make a few luxurious changes to its menu. One of them was a new lobster species that supposedly tastes even better than the ordinary crustaceans from before. This lobster has a very distinctive and entirely untypical appearance with grey-blue-ish skin. Therefore, it is of almost no surprise that there happened a mix-up with Mackled Malaclaws not even a month after the menu change.

For those who do not know, the Mackled Malaclaw is a MoM XXX rates creature that lives on land along the rocky coastline of Europe. As chance would have it, that is also where the new lobster species can be found. In this case, Madam Brown had asked their provider to obtain those new lobsters without checking where the provider would get them from. The provider, Blaise Zabini, was, as we learnt just yesterday, apparently part of some shady business deals. These were not restricted to lobster but to all kinds of other food sources, such as rare fish. Mr Zabini obtained the goods at a very low price from black market workers or poor people who live in the regions where the goods could be found and would then sell them to Madam Brown at a very high price.

This would never have been found out had the mix-up not happened. As the workers and Mr Zabini did not know, Mackled Malaclaws also happen to have grey skin, smattered with green dots. These creatures should, however, never be consumed as they cause a very high fever and green rashes to the person who ate them.

Another ability Malaclaws have is that they render a person incredibly unlucky when bitten. The Aurors speculate that that might be one of the reasons that Blaise Zabini was found out, as he had been bitten by an unlucky "lobster" a few days ago.

Luckily, no one died or was hurt indefinitely and Mr Zabini is now safely behind bars in Azkaban. Lavender Brown, however, and the Iridescent Fairy will probably have quite a long time to deal with the aftereffects of this scandal.


WHAT BINNS NEVER TOLD YOU: THE POTTER FAMILY

Every witch and wizard in Wizarding Britain knows the name Harry Potter. What only few know, mostly old pureblood families, is the interesting ancestry he has. When starting to work on this article I sought out Mr Potter himself to ask for his permission and help. To my utter surprise, the young Lord Potter did not even know of most of his ancestry. Upon finding this he insisted on helping me research. It took quite a few weeks and we were both greatly but most positively astonished at some of the relations found on the Potter family tree. The most notable ones will be presented in the following article.

Quite puzzlingly the earliest traceable ancestors did not bear the name 'Potter.' Instead, we start our story with the Peverell family. Their most notable members were the three brothers Antioch, Cadmus, and Ignotus, of which the youngest's, Ignotus', granddaughter Iolanthe would marry into the Potter family. Some claim that the three brothers were in fact the three brothers mentioned in the Tales of Beedle the Bard. We will ignore this information and rather concentrate on facts Mr Potter and I were able to discover. The fact is that the Peverell family lived around the year 1070 AD in Great Britain after moving there from Normandy. Their father, William the Elder, fought for William the Conqueror, who is supposedly his father with Saxon princess Maud Ingelrica as his mother, in the Norman Conquest. He married Adeline of Lancaster who bore him three sons: Antioch, Cadmus, and Ignotus Peverell.

Two generations later, Ignotus' granddaughter Iolanthe met Linfred of Stinchcombe while searching for a specific potion. Linfred lived in a Muggle village where he was known by his neighbours as 'the Potterer' which is where the family name 'Potter' derives from. He was an eccentric wizard who dabbled in Potions and Herbology. Two of his most notable concoctions are the Skele-Gro and Pepper-Up potions. When learning this fact, Mr Potter let out a big laugh before telling me about quite a lot of Quidditch and work accidents where he regularly needed and still needs those exact potions. At the time when the Potters first met the Peverells, Linfred was already an aged wizard of about eighty to ninety years old. Because of this he let his eldest son, Hardwin, deal with most people and simply spent his time in the garden or putting together the next potion. One of those persons Hardwin was left to deal with was Iolanthe. Not much is known, but in an old journal found in the recesses of the old Potter vault at Gringotts, Linfred describes how his son came home from the little shop, enraged at some 'impudent, bratty girl.' Two months later, there is a note stating how nice their wedding was.

The next interesting member of the Potter family and direct descendant of the previously mentioned couple was born in 1892 with the name Henry 'Harry' Potter. He was Harry Potter's great-grandfather and was active in the Wizengamot from 1913 to 1921. He caused a minor controversy by publicly condemning the then-Minister for Magic, Archer Evermonde's decision to forbid the wizarding community from aiding Muggles during the First World War. Henry's outspoken pro-Muggle views were one of the chief reasons for the Potter family's exclusion from the Sacred Twenty-Eight. His mother was a Fleamont and in his journals it states that her dying wish was that her family's name would not die out. This brought her son to name his own son Fleamont Potter. Interestingly enough, the young Fleamont later on said that he mainly attributes his duelling prowess to the fact that he always had to defend himself as a child against bullies who were making fun of him for his name. Once again, Mr Potter laughed at learning this fact. He explained that he himself used to be bullied as a child and got to be quite the fast runner because of it.

Then in 1960, his son and Harry's father, James Potter, was born as an only child. James showed a lot of promise from a very young age. He was intelligent and showed great ability in all Hogwarts subjects, but shone especially in Transfiguration. Mr Potter added that his father was an Animagus in the form of a stag. To put this in relation, there have not even been ten known people in the last hundred years to become successful Animagi. James did not do this alone, however, as he was joined by his best friends in this ambitious endeavour. Later on, he was named Head Boy even though James Potter was known as a master prankster at school. After school, he quickly married his sweetheart Lily Evans and two years later they had their first and only son, Harry James Potter. A lot of people know how the late Potter couple died; few know what they did before they went into hiding. Both were in the Order of the Phoenix, the resistance group that worked in both Wizarding Wars to achieve He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's downfall.

We all know what followed. They died and Harry Potter was lost to the Wizarding World for ten years before showing up at Hogwarts and causing all kinds of upheavals in the following seven years. Then in the final battle on the 1st of May in 1998, Harry Potter defeated the Dark Lord and became even more famous than before. What I would like to highlight here is that there could be books written alone about Mr Potter's life up to his twenties. Most forget, however, that even our illustrious Head Auror is only human. Aside from getting to know more about his exciting and interesting ancestry, I was happy to get to know the 'normal' Harry Potter as well. His decision to allow this article to be written was with the hope that people would perhaps change some of their opinions upon learning this new information. I can only hope that this article turned out the way he wished for it to be.


MAGICAL THEORY WITH LILLY: ALL ABOUT APPARITION

The Three D's: Destination, Determination, Deliberation. They are the first thing we learn when we step foot into our Apparition class. Disastrous things can happen when Apparition is done wrong. But why is that? What are we doing when we Apparate somewhere? These are the questions I will try to answer today.

Let's start with the basics. Apparition is a form of teleportation. This means that a particle (in this case, a person) is transported across space without actually crossing that space. This works because of two things: Heisenberg's uncertainty principle and Einstein-Rosen bridges.

Heisenberg's uncertainty principle is an important principle in quantum mechanics. We won't go deep into that but it is important that you have a general grasp on what it means.

In its most basic form, this principle explains that the location and speed of particles, for example electrons, can never be pinpointed at the same time. You can either know where your electron was at a specific time or how fast it was going. Because of that it is easier to say with a certain percentage where the electron will be. In the picture below you can see an atom. In the center is the nucleus, the little dots all around it are the electrons. You can see that there is a slightly darker circle where more dots are. This is the electrons' 'track' you could say. Because this is its track there is a higher probability that the electron will be there. Therefore this circle is darker. However you can see that there are also dots all around it. Those are the lower probabilities. If you have thought ahead a step you might have asked yourself: Could one not think that the electron is in two places at once? And that, dear reader, is the exact right conclusion. We don't know where the electron is, just with a certain probability that it might be in a place. But because there are at least two almost equally high probabilities, who is to say it is not in both places at once?

This leads us to quantum teleportation. For teleportation to work you need something called quantum entanglement. It's a phenomenon which occurs when two particles share the exact same state—for example the have the same wavelength, rotation, mass etc—but are in different spaces. However because the are exactly the same you can't tell that there are two different particles and it is as if one particle were in two places. To teleport not one particle but a whole body of them one would need a second body at the destination in the exact same state where the quantum information can be imprinted into.

But how does one manage that? This where the Einstein-Rosen bridge comes into play. To connect to places to move one particle one needs a quantum channel. To move a whole body one needs an Einstein-Rosen bridge. It is a solution to the Einstein field equations, so general relativity equations Albert Einstein established. Some might know this construct by the word "wormhole". A wormhole could connect extremely long distances such as a billion light years or more, short distances such as a few meters, different universes, or different points in time. That's a result of the way gravity works. Humans see the world in 3D, we see height and length in two directions. This is space. Now one has to add the time as a fourth dimension to it. This 4D construct is called spacetime. Basically everything that has mass has gravity. This gravity forms a curve in spacetime so that the spacetime fits better around the form of the object with mass. As you can see in the picture this means that two places that were separated by a straight line are now brought closer towards each other if only taking into account the actual space separating them.

The wormhole uses a warping of spacetime as well. However, it is not caused by a mass' gravity, it is simply two spots on the curved spacetime fabric connected with each other. Now this is where theory come into play. Technically as soon as you step foot into such a wormhole you are in a weird limbo where you are in the spot you just left and already in the spot you want to get to. This means you are in two places at once. While this happens you're two bodies are in the exact same state which means the quantum information can be imprinted from your "old" into your "new" body.

The magic's part in all of this is pretty simple to understand yet incredibly difficult to actually pinpoint. Magic is energy that we channel through our magical core into our wands where it is released with a certain intent. When we apparate, we imagine the exact spot where we want to land. While we do this, the magic that is released connects these two spots by warping spacetime to create a wormhole. With deliberation we then step into this wormhole and it transports us through "a very tight rubber tube" to the other side where all the information has already been transmitted to. The cracking sound that is produced as a by-effect is the result of the Einstein-Rosen bridge collapsing due to lack of energy as we stop pouring magic into it as soon as we arrive.

I hope I didn't lose everyone in the physics and that you feel more informed than before. The good thing though is that even if you did not understand all of this you can still apparate just as well as before. Thank Merlin we don't actually need to understand how magic works to use it, am I right?

*Just to make sure the science is actually believed: Quantum teleportation is something that does exist and work. Of course it is only information through electric impulse. Einstein-Rosen bridges are valid solutions of Einstein's equation, it is unknown however if they actually exist or are purely theoretical.


AMAZING ADVERTISEMENTS: FANTASTIC FORUMS

The International Wizarding School Championship welcomes you to their very first year.

Seven students from each of the five international magical schools participating (Hogwarts, Ilvermorny, Beauxbatons, Durmstrang, and Mahoutokoro) will compete against each other in a series of ten fortnightly rounds. With judging, mini competitions, and many prompts on offer, which school will you help crown The Greatest Wizarding School in the World?

Apply here: The International Wizarding School Championship or contact Verity Grahams for more information.

See you there!


COMPETITION WINNER ANNOUNCED: RETURN OF A CHAMPION

With our final competition for the season judged, and judged some more, we'd like to say a huge thank you to every single one of you who have participated. Absolutely every entry we have received over the course of this season has been brilliant and certainly made our judging job harder selecting just one person per issue. Truly, thank you for all of your efforts!

Our final winner has created an absolutely amazing design for us. Without further ado, we'd like to congratulate Dark Angel of Sorrow Returns for her winning Quidditch Dream Team design, the Egyptian Banha Bau! Congratulations, Angel, you have won 5 points for your team, the Wigtown Wanderers!

The Banha Bau…

Presenting the Banha Bau, Quidditch team all the way in Banha, Egypt! Their uniforms are made of the latest Egyptian silk and cloth material, sturdy guards from leather provided by camel and tiger pelts. Broomsticks that the Bau used are Firebolt brand brooms, and they're represented by the Bau mascot, a human headed falcon. It is their belief that it protects and watches over the team as they play. The Banha Bau aren't one of the top 8 teams from the Quidditch Ladder, however, they do keep a consistent attempt to remain in the top 10 teams instead (having remained at the tenth spot four years in a row). Team colors are represented by the Bau and Egypt itself: blue and gold. The uniforms are primarily blue with gold lining and stitching surrounding the blue fabric.

11/18/2018 . Edited 11/18/2018 #1
DarkAngelOfSorrowReturns

Good edition! And I can't believe I won XD thanks judges *hearts all around*

11/18/2018 #2
miniellipsis

Wow, this is so interesting and I learned so many things! Thank you, guys! And the Houses logos are beautiful - the Hufflepuff one is especially cute :3

11/24/2018 #3
lvn27

Congratulations to Ash!!

Thank you for menioning our Comp, Tiggs. I'm excited to have you with us! :)

Great issue again, I had fun answering the interview questions!

I'm sorry that I didn't manage to take part in the mini challenges lately... They were really cool, but I jsut didn't have the time :/

11/25/2018 #4
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