Pushing through the atmosphere. on Pecari Commons

Professor Olivers

January 03, 2015 4:37 AM

HoH Speech by Professor Olivers

The walk to the Pecari common room led them outside into Labyrinth Gardens. “Stick together,” she sing-songed as she led the group straight into the hedges. “These hedges can seem treacherous at night, but during the day you’ll be able to find your way out easily enough.” They didn’t go very far into the maze before Florence stopped in front of a suit of armor that reflected the light of the bright moon. She stood next to it and smiled at her students. “This is the entrance to your common room,” she said, gesturing to the figure. “The location of this common room is to be kept a secret from the others. If you forget where the common room is or how to get in, don’t be afraid to ask me or one of your older housemates. To enter, you just need to say the magic word. This week it is, ‘Cheery Charms.’”

At the mention of the password, the suit of armor jumped out of the way to let them in. Florence gestured for the ones at the front of the group to make their way into the warm common room. Once she made sure everyone was accounted for, she followed them in. It was a room not only warm in temperature, but aesthetically as well with plush couches and chairs in various browns and golds. There was plenty of seating around the room along with oak tables holding emblems of a wild boar, their house symbol, and a fireplace that had been lit some time ago by a prairie elf. It was a place for the students to gather, relax, mingle, or even study, though she doubted much studying took place here after classes were over.

“Welcome to your home for the next seven years,” Florence said with a smile. “Your housemates will be like your family, so get to know each other.” She raised an arm to point at a bulletin board next to the entrance. “Over there is the bulletin board where the new password will be posted each week. Other announcements such as Quidditch signups and tryouts will be posted there as well. For anyone interested in Quidditch, the captain is Rupert Princeton and his assistant is Adam Spencer. There should be a signup sheet posted soon, so keep an eye out for that if you are interested.

“The Prefects for this house are Ji-Eun Park and Adam Spencer, along with our newly appointed Head Girl Wendy Canterbury. They will be wearing a gold badge on their robes, and if you have any questions don’t be afraid to ask them or the Head Boy Anthony Carey. My room is connected as well behind that door over there. If the Prefects cannot help you, feel free to knock on my door.”

The spiel felt longer this year, but Florence trudged on through. She led the students to the other side of the common room where the stairs were located leading up to their sleeping quarters. “These stairs lead up to the dormitories. This way is to the girl’s dormitory, that way the boys’. If you go down the wrong hallway, you will be deposited back here in the common room. Curfew is at ten o’clock and no later. If you are caught outside, you will be locked out and will receive a detention from me. As I said before, the labyrinth may be friendly in the day, but can seem treacherous at night.” Florence always tried her best not to scare the first-years into keeping curfew, but almost every year she failed. “Now then, does anyone have any questions? If not, feel free to explore the common area or unpack. Get to know your roommates!”

OOC: It is not required for you to respond to this thread. You may begin posting on other boards. Please remember that your character does not have access to other common rooms. Be sure to follow the posting rules and have fun!

Subthreads:

Threat or promise? by Anna Clarissa Cooper-Flemming

0 Professor Olivers HoH Speech 0 Professor Olivers 1 5

Anna Clarissa Cooper-Flemming

January 06, 2015 11:55 AM

Threat or promise? by Anna Clarissa Cooper-Flemming

"the labyrinth may be friendly in the day, but can seem treacherous at night."

And with that, Anna Clarissa added her first item to her New School Adventure List: to stay out past curfew. It wasn't that she thought breaking rules was a good idea, or even fun, but she wanted to know what 'seem treacherous' meant. She had been expecting to go to a normal middle school with normal middle school things, but since she had ended up going to a magic middle school (and attached high school, she supposed - there had been much older kids at the feast who had gotten badges) she had high expectations. If 'treacherous' didn't involve at least one animal that looked scarier than it ought, she would be incredibly disappointed.

Looking around her, Anna Clarissa wondered if she should try talking to people, or just head to the dormitory to sleep. She'd never shared a room with anyone before, but she had also stayed up all night last night out of sheer excitement and was feeling the aftereffects. It was part of why she hadn't done much at the feast they'd just had - she was too tired to think much beyond trying to figure out what food was which, and what she should eat. Anna Clarissa had considered becoming a vegetarian over the summer but was glad she hadn't, because that would have been a whole new challenge.

But she had been directed to get to know people, so Anna Clarissa decided to go that route, even if her eyelids were a little bit droopy.

"Hi," she said, approaching the nearest person. "My name is Anna Clarissa! How are you?"

0 Anna Clarissa Cooper-Flemming Threat or promise? 0 Anna Clarissa Cooper-Flemming 0 5

Izrael Tizze

January 06, 2015 6:59 PM

Food coma incoming in 3... 2... 1... by Izrael Tizze

Izzy had followed her Head of House all the way out to the gardens with one hand resting on her poor, bloated stomach the whole way. Her mama always used to say that Izzy's eyes were bigger than her stomach, but Izzy regretted nothing. The food at the Opening Feast had been finger lickin'!

Still, Izzy stumbled her way out of the castle with the rest of the first years, a little bleary-eyed and having trouble focusing on what the Professor was saying to them. She picked out a few key words such as "friendly" and "treacherous," and tried to file them away in her memory, but they just slipped away like wispy, early-morning dreams.

Watching a suit of armor animate and jump to life, however, pulled her mind back to attention. She had already become content with her surroundings, never being one to remain uncomfortable in a new setting for too long, and had almost forgotten that she was at a school for dad-gummed magic! In her post-food daze, she almost turned to the person next to her to ask if they had just seen what she had seen, but stopped herself before she had the chance to embarrass herself.

Izzy tapped herself on the forehead with two fingers. "Duh, Iz," she said to herself. Of course he had seen it.

So preoccupied as she had been with her own astonishment and admonishment that she didn't catch was the professor was saying to them until it was too late and all of the first years were being herded into the opening behind the suit of armor's rightful place. She followed, naturally, planning to check with someone later about what she had spaced.

Izzy wasn't shy about the agape expression on her face as she looked around the room. How had this place been in the hedge?! She turned in a circle, taking it all in when someone spoke to her.

Izzy became grounded immediately and turned to look at the girl who had introduced herself. Suddenly, Izzy grinned broadly, shook the girl's hand with enthusiasm and declared, "I'm Izzy. Izzy Tizze."

0 Izrael Tizze Food coma incoming in 3... 2... 1... 0 Izrael Tizze 0 5

Anna Clarissa

January 06, 2015 7:24 PM

Liftoff! by Anna Clarissa

"Aw man are you for real?" Anna Clarissa asked delightedly as the girl she had turned to introduced herself. "That is an excellent name!" Hers was exceptionally long although not particularly exceptional. She never really minded, unless people tried to refer to her as just her first name. The curly-haired girl thought Anna was a particularly boring name, but because Clarissa was a much spiffier one, they could go together. But Izzy Tizze was a really really excellent name. Her new friend's parents must have been in tip-top naming shape when she'd been born!

She looked around the common room, where people had dispersed in all sorts of directions after the speech and dinner. There were some animals in the common room, and Anna Clarissa remembered that the letter had said she could bring an animal. She didn't have one of the listed ones handy and her parents hadn't been particularly interested in letting her ask if she could bring the family Labrador, but other people had apparently had some of them. "Why are we allowed to bring owls to school?" Anna Clarissa asked, wondering out loud but not really expecting an answer. The corners of her mouth turned down slightly in thought and she stuck her hand deep in the pocket of her robes.

(Robes? She was wearing robes? Like a Disney wizard from the old movies? Wowee!)

"And also, what is a puffskein?" she asked, pronouncing the foreign word on the letter carefully.

0 Anna Clarissa Liftoff! 0 Anna Clarissa 0 5

Izrael Tizze

January 06, 2015 7:45 PM

Re: Liftoff! by Izrael Tizze

Izzy didn't blush at the compliment to her name like most girls might. Instead, she puffed out her chest a little proudly and said, "I'm awful fond of it, thank ya kindly."

She released Anna Clarissa's hand a moment later. Gosh, everyone here was so nice so far! She had been a little worried, on account'a she was the new girl in town, but this whole "first year" thing kinda meant that everyone was the new kid in town.

"I don't know about puffy-skeens, but I reckon if it's a critter, I can find out. I'm pretty good with critters. I think maybe owls are special, though. Magical-like," Izzy said enthusiastically. "You know, like Archimedes in that cartoon about King Arthur and Merlin, where he turned Arthur into a fish anda squirrel an' whatnot."

0 Izrael Tizze Re: Liftoff! 0 Izrael Tizze 0 5

Izrael Tizze

January 06, 2015 7:45 PM

Pushing through the atmosphere. by Izrael Tizze

0 Izrael Tizze Pushing through the atmosphere. 0 Izrael Tizze 0 5

Anna Clarissa

January 07, 2015 10:49 AM

Uh something something rhymes with atmosphere by Anna Clarissa

Anna Clarissa added another item to her list of new school adventures: figure out puffskeins. It looked like Izzy would be able to help her with that one - which was good! Anna Clarissa wasn't really confident in her ability with animals, mostly because she didn't have much experience at all. There were dogs in her neighborhood and her aunt had a black cat named Toby who didn't like Anna Clarissa or the cousins very much at all, but she certainly wasn't as confident as Izzy was about her ability to figure out critters.

Her new friend also had a very good theory about owls, which Anna Clarissa was a little disappointed she herself hadn't come up with. Still, she nodded her head, causing her curls to bounce. "Yeah, that makes sense," she said. "I wonder if they're like our familiars?" she paused, hazel eyes widening. "Wait. Cats can be familiars for sure and I think toads can be too. Maybe puffskeins are too! But they must be extra magical, because I've never heard of them before." Anna Clarissa paused again, contemplating if that was a good criteria to figure out if things were magic or not. She decided it was. "I want a familiar!"

0 Anna Clarissa Uh something something rhymes with atmosphere 0 Anna Clarissa 0 5

Izrael Tizze

January 07, 2015 12:55 PM

I was never real good at rhymin' games. by Izrael Tizze

"I'd bet my right boot that puffy-skeens are extra magical on account'a I have never heard'a one before," Izzy said slowly, tapping her chin like her pa did whenever he was deep in thought. "I don't know from 'familiar,' but I ought to get myself a critter'a some kind, I reckon."

Her eyes lit up through her food-dimmed brain as she considered the possibilities. She wrinkled her nose at the thought of keeping a toad, though. "Toad's'll give you warts, so that's out," she said, thinking out loud. "I definitely remember somethin' about rats," she continued, smiling. "They're kinda cute, but momma'd never let me keep one in th'house.

"I did consider bringin' Missy, my maw-maw's cat," Izzy told Anna Clarissa, "but she's kinda prissy-like, and not very friendly, 'specially if you separate her from maw-maw. Cats are awful high maintenance anyway, so I s'pose that leaves only owls an' puffy-skeens."

Having boiled the problem down to the next step, she snapped her fingers and said confidently. "That does 'er. I'm gonna hafta find out what a puffy-skeen is before I can decide."

She grinned at Anna Clarissa triumphantly for a moment, before the smile slipped off her face, leaving a trail of confusion behind. "Uh, 'cept I don't have the first idea where to look t'find out," she said, realizing the flaw in her plan. "I went t'some magic stores for my school supplies, but we didn't ever look at any pets."

0 Izrael Tizze I was never real good at rhymin' games. 0 Izrael Tizze 0 5

Anna Clarissa

January 08, 2015 9:15 AM

And I was never good at poetry! by Anna Clarissa

Overall, Anna Clarissa was finding Izzy to be one of the most delightful people she had ever talked with. Her new friend had a very unique way of talking and some of the things she said were getting filed away in Anna Clarissa's brain to see if she could use them to. It was a little weird that Izzy didn't know what a familiar was since she was so smart about other things, like how owls were probably magical, but since Izzy was also talking differently, Anna Clarissa thought that it might be because where Izzy was from, they used a different word.

"Woah, that's why witches have warts!" Anna Clarissa exclaimed when her new friend mentioned that toads give you warts. It made so much sense now!

"We should Google - " Anna Clarissa started when Izzy brought up figuring out what a puffskein was. She paused. They hadn't seen any computers or any mention of a computer lab or anything like that. Did wizards use computers? Well, if they did there would definitely be a computer in the library. If wizards used libraries. She thought back to the walk here, but if there had been a part where there had been a library pointed out, the hazel-eyed first year had definitely not been paying attention. There was a lot of new stuff to learn though, so it was fully possible she just hadn't thought about it enough to remember. Or she might have been distracted by all the food, or the concept of sleeping in dorms.

"Uh. Maybe find a library?" Anna Clarissa suggested hesitantly. "We can maybe use a computer or find a book that has pictures."

0 Anna Clarissa And I was never good at poetry! 0 Anna Clarissa 0 5

Izrael Tizze

January 09, 2015 2:44 PM

Never read much anyhow. by Izrael Tizze

Izzy liked Anna Clarissa's energy. As a girl who was often difficult to keep up with, Izzy related to very few people of any age, but her new-found friend seemed to have plenty to spare, even after the massive amount of food they had been served earlier. She was a little relieved to hear her reference, Google, as well. While Izzy didn't have a computer of her own, she at least recognized this as an indication that Anna Clarissa was a Muggle-born like her.

"The library!" she exclaimed when Anna Clarissa came up with a solution so obvious that Izzy felt a little silly for not realizing it herself. "That's a great idea! We could go to—"

She stopped abruptly, and snapped her fingers in frustration. "Dang!" she exclaimed. "I haven't got the first idea where we'd find the library," she admitted. She looked around the common room to see if there was an older student that they could ask for directions, but the place was nearly deserted, and Izzy remembered one very crucial detail.

She grinned sheepishly at Anna Clarissa. "I got all e'cited and forgot," she said. "It's night time, and darn near ever'body's gone t'bed already. Prob'ly too late to get to a library tonight."

0 Izrael Tizze Never read much anyhow. 0 Izrael Tizze 0 5

Anna Clarissa

January 09, 2015 4:03 PM

That sounds like a song lyric by Anna Clarissa

"Well what time is it?" Anna Clarissa asked. She had taken her own digital wristwatch off her wrist when it had started displaying random numbers and flickering oddly at dinner. It was weird because it had actually been a summer birthday present and so she hadn't expected it to act up already. Maybe it needed an extra battery, but she hadn't brought any of the tiny batteries that watches needed. She had a camping flashlight and extra AA batteries (just in case!) in her trunk but that was it. The first year hadn't really thought to bring that sort of thing but her mom was worried. It was a mom thing.

On the other hand, as she looked around she realized that her new friend was right. The common room was pretty empty, although Anna Clarissa thought it still felt early for bed. But maybe she was just excited for her new school? Especially because she hadn't slept the night before, the curly haired girl thought she must be prone to getting tired earlier than other people. But excitement was a pretty good reason to not sleep, in her opinion.

"Do the libraries work like normal libraries or are there special rules because we live her?" Anna Clarissa was more thinking out loud than actually asking (even though Izzy was a lot smarter than her with magic stuff that didn't necessarily extend to how their new school worked).

0 Anna Clarissa That sounds like a song lyric 0 Anna Clarissa 0 5