RP: Perhaps Basic Black Is Too Basic?
Date: 23 March 2005
Characters: Rabastan Lestrange
Location: Old Stone Church
Status: Private
Summary: Rabastan comes to the conclusion that he really needs to rethink his wardrobe and his approach to offering aid.
Completion: Complete
"Thank ye, Father. We appreciates your help."
"Please, Mr. Michaels, call me Rabastan."
"Oh no, Father. It wouldn't be respectful like. Aston, Linus, say good bye to the Reverend and his kitty."
Rabastan mentally sighed and gave up. He had the same problem yesterday, even the young Auror who came to take his statement regarding the damage to his fence and the graveyard had addressed him as Reverend. Most people were assuming that he was some sort of priest because he chose to live in a church.
He shook hands with Mr. Michaels and his two boys who had come looking for food. Apparently what little meat they had was kept in a muggle refrigerator and had spoiled on them as the man had not known how to charm a cold store. Rabastan had taken the man to his own kitchen and showed him the charms he had used to turn the muggle appliance into magical cupboards. Luckily the charms were relatively simple to learn and required a straight forward wand movement. However, a person had to either know the charms or be capable of figuring them out on their own... and that was a problem.
After the Michaels this morning, Rabastan had spelled more words next to the existing Sanctuary message on the fence. "Spells taught here. Free instruction." After the third set of visitors and another Reverend, Rabastan decided that more was needed. He took a chance that Tibbs and Strak might respond to him and called them. "Tibbs? Strak? Will you come?"
"YES SIR!" The two elves appeared on the lawn and chimed in unison. They really were the grubbiest excuses for house elves he had ever seen, but beggars cannot be choosers, and the two were certainly pleasant enough.
"Do you two have work or a family anywhere?" Rabastan didn't want to be calling them away if they already had families or jobs.
Tibbs, it seemed, was the appointed spokeself. He stepped forward and looked up at Rabastan. "Oh noes, sir. Tibbs and Strak is free elves, Holy Sir."
Rabastan growled softly and took a deep breath. "Do not call me 'holy'. Sir is fine or Mr. Rabastan if you prefer, Tibbs. You too, Strak. Look boys, I have a very important job that I think you both would be perfect for. Do you think you might like to work for me for a few days?"
Both elves started jumping up and down, clapping their hands, and nodding. "OH YESES SIR!"
"All right then, but you will both have to do something for me first." Rabastan couldn't possibly have them running errands and entering people's homes looking like this. "You'll have to clean up. Baths, clean clothes, combed hair, trimmed nails... the whole works. It's very important that you both look nice if you will be helping people. Understand?" Both elves looked a bit frightened and had definitely lost their enthusiasm. For a moment, Rabastan thought he hit a deal breaker, then Tibbs chimed in again...
"Sir, Tibbs and Strak don't have any clean clothes or bathses, sir. We is washing in river but water is muddy and cold for swimming. Tibbs is sorry we is not able for helping, sir." The two elves looked stricken.
"Boys, do you think you could use a shower instead? You could clean up here and I have some shirts that will work." The two elves launched themselves at his legs which Rabastan took as a yes. He showed them facilities and brought out some fresh soap and towels for them to use then went to modify a couple of the t-shirts he had set aside for the elves at Socks into something that would work for Tibbs and Strak.
After the elves were cleaned up and not such a ragged looking lot, Rabastan set to work explaining about muggle appliances and what they did. He explained how he turned his muggle refrigerator into cold and freeze cupboards and asked them if they could figure out how to do the same with elf magics. It took them both a few tries, but once they had, they were consistently able to duplicate the process. Next he walked them down to the abandoned house between the church and Roma to show them the other appliances they might encounter in a muggle kitchen. They went through the important things first, such as how to change an electric ignition on a gas range into one that started with magic. Rabastan showed them how to tell if a hot water heater and stove were electric. He explained how to create perpetual heating cupboards out of the electric versions. There wasn't much that could be done about the cooktop of an electric stove or that could be done about microwaves. Rabastan told the elves to direct anyone who asked about the microwave or cooking to come to the church to learn the cooking spells. Lighting, climate control and a charmed tea pot later, Rabastan felt fairly confident that his two new assistants looked presentable and were able to manage most of the magic needed to convert a muggle home into a magical one.
Rabastan had already sent the pair of elves off with a young lady who could not have been more than 20 and was on the verge of tears not knowing what to do without electricity. He was about ready to go clean himself up for his afternoon meeting with the Headmistress and Deputy Headmaster when there was another knock on his door.
"Excuse me, Reverend. Could you teach me the spell to boil water?"
Rabastan nodded. He really needed to rethink his basic black wardrobe. "Wand at the ready, please. It is like so..."
Characters: Rabastan Lestrange
Location: Old Stone Church
Status: Private
Summary: Rabastan comes to the conclusion that he really needs to rethink his wardrobe and his approach to offering aid.
Completion: Complete
"Thank ye, Father. We appreciates your help."
"Please, Mr. Michaels, call me Rabastan."
"Oh no, Father. It wouldn't be respectful like. Aston, Linus, say good bye to the Reverend and his kitty."
Rabastan mentally sighed and gave up. He had the same problem yesterday, even the young Auror who came to take his statement regarding the damage to his fence and the graveyard had addressed him as Reverend. Most people were assuming that he was some sort of priest because he chose to live in a church.
He shook hands with Mr. Michaels and his two boys who had come looking for food. Apparently what little meat they had was kept in a muggle refrigerator and had spoiled on them as the man had not known how to charm a cold store. Rabastan had taken the man to his own kitchen and showed him the charms he had used to turn the muggle appliance into magical cupboards. Luckily the charms were relatively simple to learn and required a straight forward wand movement. However, a person had to either know the charms or be capable of figuring them out on their own... and that was a problem.
After the Michaels this morning, Rabastan had spelled more words next to the existing Sanctuary message on the fence. "Spells taught here. Free instruction." After the third set of visitors and another Reverend, Rabastan decided that more was needed. He took a chance that Tibbs and Strak might respond to him and called them. "Tibbs? Strak? Will you come?"
"YES SIR!" The two elves appeared on the lawn and chimed in unison. They really were the grubbiest excuses for house elves he had ever seen, but beggars cannot be choosers, and the two were certainly pleasant enough.
"Do you two have work or a family anywhere?" Rabastan didn't want to be calling them away if they already had families or jobs.
Tibbs, it seemed, was the appointed spokeself. He stepped forward and looked up at Rabastan. "Oh noes, sir. Tibbs and Strak is free elves, Holy Sir."
Rabastan growled softly and took a deep breath. "Do not call me 'holy'. Sir is fine or Mr. Rabastan if you prefer, Tibbs. You too, Strak. Look boys, I have a very important job that I think you both would be perfect for. Do you think you might like to work for me for a few days?"
Both elves started jumping up and down, clapping their hands, and nodding. "OH YESES SIR!"
"All right then, but you will both have to do something for me first." Rabastan couldn't possibly have them running errands and entering people's homes looking like this. "You'll have to clean up. Baths, clean clothes, combed hair, trimmed nails... the whole works. It's very important that you both look nice if you will be helping people. Understand?" Both elves looked a bit frightened and had definitely lost their enthusiasm. For a moment, Rabastan thought he hit a deal breaker, then Tibbs chimed in again...
"Sir, Tibbs and Strak don't have any clean clothes or bathses, sir. We is washing in river but water is muddy and cold for swimming. Tibbs is sorry we is not able for helping, sir." The two elves looked stricken.
"Boys, do you think you could use a shower instead? You could clean up here and I have some shirts that will work." The two elves launched themselves at his legs which Rabastan took as a yes. He showed them facilities and brought out some fresh soap and towels for them to use then went to modify a couple of the t-shirts he had set aside for the elves at Socks into something that would work for Tibbs and Strak.
After the elves were cleaned up and not such a ragged looking lot, Rabastan set to work explaining about muggle appliances and what they did. He explained how he turned his muggle refrigerator into cold and freeze cupboards and asked them if they could figure out how to do the same with elf magics. It took them both a few tries, but once they had, they were consistently able to duplicate the process. Next he walked them down to the abandoned house between the church and Roma to show them the other appliances they might encounter in a muggle kitchen. They went through the important things first, such as how to change an electric ignition on a gas range into one that started with magic. Rabastan showed them how to tell if a hot water heater and stove were electric. He explained how to create perpetual heating cupboards out of the electric versions. There wasn't much that could be done about the cooktop of an electric stove or that could be done about microwaves. Rabastan told the elves to direct anyone who asked about the microwave or cooking to come to the church to learn the cooking spells. Lighting, climate control and a charmed tea pot later, Rabastan felt fairly confident that his two new assistants looked presentable and were able to manage most of the magic needed to convert a muggle home into a magical one.
Rabastan had already sent the pair of elves off with a young lady who could not have been more than 20 and was on the verge of tears not knowing what to do without electricity. He was about ready to go clean himself up for his afternoon meeting with the Headmistress and Deputy Headmaster when there was another knock on his door.
"Excuse me, Reverend. Could you teach me the spell to boil water?"
Rabastan nodded. He really needed to rethink his basic black wardrobe. "Wand at the ready, please. It is like so..."