Professor Grayson Wright
July 20, 2018 4:21 PM
Welcome to First Year Orientation! by Professor Grayson Wright
As they disembarked the wagons, returning students might have been slightly surprised by the figure waiting to greeting them, helping any down from the wagons who required such assistance and pointing everyone in the directions they needed to go and reminding everyone to leave their trunks in the wagons for the elves to collect. Normally, after all, Professor Xavier performed this duty. On this particular day, however, Nathan was indisposed, and so Grayson Wright had gamely volunteered to step up to cover the goals, including the ones related to separating the first years from everyone else and giving them the tour.To those who did not know him, nothing about his appearance was the sort of thing to inspire surprise, or even much notice. He was of average height, with dark hair and eyes, and a face so devoid of distinctive features that it was quite possible the new students might primarily identify him as That Professor With The Glasses for a while, as he required the glasses just to get around the school without bumping into things and thus was not seen without them on occasions when he was conscious. In the outside world, he might have further distinguished himself by wardrobe, to a point, but at school, in his role as a teacher, he had the blandest of bland navy blue robes on, having given up attempts to wear ties about halfway through his first year on the job.
He also talked with his hands a lot, though this was less apparent than usual because he was using them to point the first years in the right direction as he separated them out of the students he recognized. Said direction was into one of the clearings in the Labyrinth Gardens, where a running fountain stood in the center and there were three tables off to one side, away from the roped-off entrances to other paths. On the first table was a number of folders, each the same forest green color as the students’ robes. These contained class schedules, school maps, and lists of the major school rules students would be expected to follow. On the next table was a variety of snacks – sandwiches, fruits and vegetables, cupcakes, cookies, and various other finger foods – and small plates to eat these on. On the third were small glasses and a selection of water, fruit juices, and fruit punch.
Once everyone seemed to be in or heading in the right direction, Professor Wright left the wagons in the elves’ capable hands and went to face down possibly the most daunting task he’d had since his first lesson: addressing the first years.
“Hello everyone – gather round, please, I don’t want to shout.” Or amplify his voice magically, as that would have been a bit much in such a small space with so few people to address. “Hello, good afternoon. I’m Professor Wright, and starting tomorrow, I’ll be your Charms teacher. Right now, though, I’m your Orientation leader, so – welcome to Sonora Academy.”
To some, it no doubt sounded like he was speaking slowly. This was because he was making an effort to speak reasonably slowly. Sonora had had quite the influx of students who did not consider English as their first language in recent years – in just the past two years, they had had Quebecois French, Russian, and German, with the Quebecois student also speaking Chinese. On the new rosters, Professor Wright had noticed one name that strongly suggested to him that its owner was related to the school’s resident Russophone, so it was fair enough to assume that at least one person in this year would also struggle with English.
“Sonora is a seven-year school where you will, if you stay with us all those years, gain a thorough education in magical theory and practice. You’ll start out, for your first year, with seven classes – Charms, Care of Magical Creatures, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, Potions, Transfiguration, and flying lessons. You can drop flying lessons in your second year, and begin electives in your third year, if you want. In your fifth year, you’ll take your first set of major exams, the Critical Assessment of Talents and Skills, or CATS. After that, you may select classes to focus on, though you’ll need at least two to graduate and three if you want to pursue your education further after you leave Sonora.”
He thought that was enough terrifying exam talk for the limited attention spans of eleven-year-olds for now. “We know that you all come from different educational backgrounds now,” he said, because this was true. Some might have gone to Muggle elementary schools while others might have had specialized tutors for each subject while others might have had…more unorthodox training. Most fell somewhere on a continuum between the extremes of unschooling and specialized tutors for each subject. “Your professors all have office hours when we can give you extra help in our subjects if you need it, and Professor Skies, our Deputy Headmistress and your Transfiguration teacher, runs special sessions for anyone who needs help with reading and writing English more fluently, or with basic maths. You can see times for those in the schedules in your green folders – everyone get one of those if you don’t have one yet.
“Outside of classes, you’ll have some choice in how you spend your time. We have a variety of clubs and sports here, and you’ll see notices about meetings posted around the schools when the students who organize them are ready to start up for the year. Breakfast is from 6:30 to 8:30 a.m, lunch is from 11:00 to one, and supper is five till seven, but you can find snacks and drinks there between those times as well. Curfew is at ten p.m., and at that time, you’ll need to be inside your Houses – which are part of the main building, don’t worry. They’re four groups of rooms, and tonight, at the Welcoming Feast, you’ll be Sorted into one of them by dipping the blank badges you have now into a cauldron. If your badge turns blue, you’re an Aladren – the House that values learning and problem-solving.” He might have sounded a little proud there; he was a former Aladren. “If it turns red, you belong in Crotalus, the House for people who like to be well-prepared for everything. Yellow means you’re in Teppenpaw, the House for our diplomats – and a House which has done very well in the House Cup recently,” he added, lest Teppenpaw sound lame to them. “Finally, if your badge turns brown, that means you’re a Pecari, the House for people who always land on their feet and are always willing to take a chance. All the Houses have other traits, though, so don’t worry if you don’t think any of those things sounds exactly like you – there’s a place for everyone here at Sonora.
“Your House will have prefects, who are older students, and a Head, who is a staff member – they’ll all look after you while you’re here. Your House can earn points based on things you do – excelling in class or in sports, or showing responsibility, or somehow helping the school community and showing leadership. The House with the most points at the end of the year earns the House Cup, and sometimes other privileges – last year, Teppenpaw got to choose the music for the second half of our Midsummer Ball, and they’ll host the Cup this year.
“If no-one has any questions about all of that, you can mingle and get to know your classmates for a while and have some snacks until we begin our tour of the mansion. If you do, feel free to come see me – and welcome again to Sonora.”
OOC (Out of Character) Note:
Welcome first years to Sonora! You can post a reply here to ask staff questions or meet your new classmates. This thread is intended for first year students to have a chance to try out posting and get acclimated to the site before we throw you into the big Opening Feast, which is open to the entire school population and can be a bit overwhelming.
Please remember that anything that happened in the Sandbox was just practice and did not actually occur. (You are welcome, of course, to use any background information you generated about your character during these exercises such as pets, accidental magic, etc, but they have not yet spent any time at Sonora or interacted with any classmates.)
If you enter your email address when you reply, you will be notified when someone responds to your post. This is optional but can be useful for helping you keep track of posts. Please do NOT check the box that says 'show email address,' as this will make it public and may result in spam.
Now, go forth, new first years of Sonora! Post, enjoy, have fun! Everyone here is happy to help out, so if you've got a question, put it on the OOC board or try to catch somebody in the Chatzy and we'll try to get you an answer as quick as we can. Have fun and we’re glad you could join us!
Subthreads: Is it too soon to throw up? by Evelyn Stones with Ness McLeod, Anonymous
Expecting the unexpected... by Lyssa Fitzgerald with Malikhi Hill
Hello, everyone. It is so nice to be here. by Katerina Vorontsov with Julius Astley
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Professor Grayson Wright
Welcome to First Year Orientation!
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Professor Grayson Wright
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Lyssa Fitzgerald
July 23, 2018 1:51 PM
The trouble with trouble, is it starts out as fun by Lyssa Fitzgerald
Lyssa looked over at the boy standing next to her. He sounded so proper, though that was really just his accent. She enjoyed hearing him talk. Something about him though made her think about her eldest brother John Jr. It was momentary, but made her slightly cautious from the get go.Lyssa looked down at her drink, "It is very orange indeed."
She stuck out her hand trying to assess what it was about this boy that made her think of JJ. He looked different from John Jr. in many ways, but there was something. "My name's Lyssa. What’s yours?"
She was trying hard not to let the feeling that he was reminding her of JJ to dissuade her from talking with him. Then it hit her like a ton of bricks, it was his smile. It felt like the smile was more of a smirk, and he was hiding something behind it. She was trying not to let the feelings inside of her rise towards anger and defensiveness. She needed to give him the benefit of the doubt. She took a deep breath and put the smile on her face she’d learned to put on when talking with people who thought she wasn’t fill in the blank enough to do something. She hated using the smile, but she also didn’t want to start off assuming everyone she met was like JJ. That would be bad.
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Lyssa Fitzgerald
The trouble with trouble, is it starts out as fun
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Lyssa Fitzgerald
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Malikhi Hill
July 23, 2018 5:36 PM
Well, fun is never bad... by Malikhi Hill
Malikhi took her hand and shook it firmly. His father had taught him to be mindful of his handshake. A limp and clammy handshake indicated weakness and if there was one thing Malikhi certainly wasn't, it was weak. Satisfied that he'd delivered the confident handshake his father would be happy with, he answered Lyssa."I'm Malikhi. Malikhi Hill. It's nice to meet you, Lyssa." Her name felt kind of funny on his tongue, kind of like he was trying to imitate a snake. Also, he wasn't sure, but he thought that she looked kind of nervous and tense. Maybe it was because it was their first day. He leaned against the drinks table, shaking his head, trying to get his blond hair out of his eyes before carrying on the conversation.
"Do you know anything about this place?" he asked, wondering if, just by chance, he could get any inside information beforehand. It would be very helpful for any future, mischievous endeavours.
As he listened to her reply, he looked around the rest of the gardens and, also, the other students. There were two other girls nearby who seemed deep in conversation about something-or-other that Malikhi couldn't hear. There a few others wandering about but, for the moment, he was interested in Lyssa.
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Malikhi Hill
Well, fun is never bad...
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Malikhi Hill
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Lyssa Fitzgerald
July 27, 2018 9:42 AM
I'm not so sure about... you see where it becomes trouble? by Lyssa Fitzgerald
The handshake was firm. It almost felt like the boy was trying to prove something to her with it, which Lyssa thought was entertaining. There really was no reason to do so. She returned the handshake with her normal one, which she was told was stronger than normal for a girl her age, but not as strong as her father’s but strong enough to hold her own with her older brothers.“Nice to meet you Malikey. Is that correct?” she said, hoping she was pronouncing the name correctly. She mentally started to work through how to remember his name. Hill was easy enough, but Malikey would be more difficult. Calling someone by their proper name was the sweetest sound for that person, is what her mother always said.
Lyssa was about to respond to Malikey with some things that Parker had told her, but then saw that he was looking around the garden in a nonchalant way. Almost like a bored predator who was looking for other prey. Part of Lyssa was momentarily upset, but then realized that if he wasn’t interested, then why should she be. Though she was more relaxed, the boy was still causing Lyssa to be on alert. So instead of answering with things she’d learned from Parker, she took a different tact.
“I don’t really know a whole lot. My parents didn’t come here, and I don’t really know much about the magic world, cause my parents aren’t a part of it. All I know is it’s a boarding school and we can’t bring cell phones.” She paused briefly to see how he reacted to her words. She hadn’t lied to the boy, but she felt a bit defensive by the way he was acting, so she had decided to not tell the whole truth.
“What about you? Do you know anything about this place?”
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Lyssa Fitzgerald
I'm not so sure about... you see where it becomes trouble?
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Lyssa Fitzgerald
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Malikhi Hill
July 27, 2018 10:15 AM
Yes, I do see... by Malikhi Hill
Malikhi held in a laugh. It was rare that anyone managed to pronounced his name correctly the first time and it amused him each time. It was like his own personal trick and he didn't even need to put any effort into it! Mah-lick-hi. It felt like the perfect name for the boy who enjoyed playing tricks and pranks on other people. His parents should be commended."It's close enough," he told Lyssa. After having looked around at the rest of their year group and the gardens, he decided that Lyssa was the most interesting person to talk to at the moment. There was a girl with a posh-looking hat sitting at the fountain but he didn't really want to bother with well-to-do types and there were two other girls who seemed far more interested in each other. There was another boy but he looked thunderous and rather miserable and that was not the kind of person Malikhi generally associated with at all.
There was something about Lyssa, though, that Malikhi couldn't quite pinpoint in her answer. He dismissed it though, interested to learn that she was a muggleborn. Malikhi was a half-blood, his mother the witch in his family while his father was the muggle. At least that was something kind of in common. However, she didn't know anything which wasn't massively helpful. Still, he supposed that he'd learn about the academy soon enough.
"Oh, very little. Coming here was a last minute decision sort of thing," he admitted, and it was true. He was supposed to have attended school in England until his Aunt had interfered and dragged him all the way to America. Still, he supposed he had to make the best of it. "I'm interested in the subjects though, particularly charms and potions. I think they would be very helpful."
Malikhi did not admit that they would be helpful towards his mischief-making. He did not want to give the game away. "What about you? Any subjects you're looking forward to?"
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Malikhi Hill
Yes, I do see...
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Malikhi Hill
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