Deputy Headmistress Amelia Pierce
January 11, 2013 10:57 PM
Head of House Speech by Deputy Headmistress Amelia Pierce
She led the way from Cascade Hall to the corridor containing the portrait of Gunther the Zombie, keeping a steady pace that would not be too difficult for eleven year olds to maintain, but also did not allow for much dawdling. She pointed out key landmarks they could use to find their way back in the morning for breakfast, and also indicated which routes would lead to the library and their core classrooms.For those purebloods who were up on the Who Not to Talk To List (a common type in Crotalus, though not the only one, which sometimes caused tensions), they could also use the time to deliberate how they were going to handle having their Head of House be a disowned liberal muggle-loving Quidditch-playing unmarried thirty-nine (not forty quite yet!) year old woman who ran a branch of DISCUSS - the non-profit organization created to help bring wizardkind into the modern era, where blood type and personal lifestyles did not bar a person from advancement, marriages were arranged by the happy couple rather than their parents, and other such things that traditional purebloods did not approve of - out of her own house. Her adopted daughter Belinda was perhaps slightly more notorious, having been a co-founder of DISCUSS and widely believed to be a lesbian, but Amelia was certainly not well loved in Society circles herself.
It was a fair amount to think about but they'd run out of time. She indicated the large painting beside which she had come to stop. Its less than handsome subject was nearly the same size she was. "I would like to introduce you all to Gunther the Zombie," she introduced him. "Gunther guards the entrance to our Commons. To enter, you will need the password. Give this to our guardian and he will allow you inside. Please note that only Crotalus House members are allowed to enter the commonroom. Do not share the password with students of other Houses." She had once considered making a joke that it was for their own safety because Gunther was entitled to eat the brains of non-Crotalus students seeking entry, but had eventually decided the risk was too high that they might believe her and later try to use Gunther as part of a strategy to get rid of someone they didn't like.
Instead, she looked around to make sure they were all paying attention. This was one of the more important pieces of information she'd be giving them tonight. "The password is Horseradish." As she said the word, she turned to look at Gunther, and his portrait swung open on hinges as she finished saying it. "Follow me inside, please," she instructed and stepped over the couple of inches of wall that stood below the portrait, and into the room beyond. Older students would probably have to duck if they got taller than about five and a half feet tall, but the eleven year old first years would be able to walk right in. (Though her own head would fit under the top of the opening without ducking, it was a near enough thing that she ducked anyway as she stepped through; she was 5'5".)
There were a half dozen matching armchairs and couches, with maroon upholstery and silver trim. The carpet was gray and the walls were a tasteful shade of red that Amelia, for one, had been relieved to find was not as vibrant a hue as she might have feared when she first heard the House colors were red and silver.
Once everyone had filed in and the portrait closed behind them, she tapped the bulletin board that stood beside the room's entrance. "The password changes weekly. The current one will be posted here. I suggest checking it before you leave in the morning to make sure it hasn't changed." She pointed out the relevant spot where Horseradish was currently being displayed. "If you forget the password, my office is down the hall. Keep walking past Gunther and you'll see a door with my name on it. If I'm around, I'll let you in. If I'm not, my wards will let me know you're there, and I'll get to you as soon as I can."
The rest of the bulletin board was fairly empty aside from the password, but that didn't mean what wasn't there yet was any less important. "The board is also used for announcements and sign-up sheets, like the Quidditch one that our new Captain, Topher Calhoun, should be putting up soon. We won't be playing regular games this year, but I encourage any and all of you to try out. I am looking into the possibility of less formal matches, though of course, I can't make promises yet." She was the Coach and a promoter of Unifying Sporting Societies, so the recruitment attempt had to be made. Plus, Crotalus had lost at least one Chaser, possibly two, and they'd need the extra year to get back up to speed. "There are no prerequisites for joining the team. The Captain is Christopher Calhoun, and his assistant is Linus Maculay. Your prefects are Eliza Bennett, Topher Calhoun again, and Paul Bennett. Any of them or I will be available to respond to any questions you need answered."
Moving away from the wall and bulletin board, Amelia took place in the middle of the room and stood up straighter, as befitted a more formal lecture. "Crotalus is the House for strategic planners. You turned red today because you match our qualities of being sensible, respectable, down-to-earth, cautious, and/or rule driven. That is fortunate for you all because Crotalus has rules and I expect you all to follow them."
"First, curfew is at ten. You are not required to be in bed at that hour, but the lights will dim, Gunther will not allow anyone back inside, and anyone caught outside of Crotalus or making too much noise will receive a detention. Second, you will show respect to each other and to all staff. You need to live with each other for seven years. Do not make it unnecessarily difficult for yourselves." This was a remark she regretted not making six years ago, when Eliza and Renee were standing before her. "Also, rudeness will win you no points with anybody. It will, in fact, lose them from our House point total, and earn you a detention. If there is someone who is being unpleasant to you, please consider it an exercise in refinement not to stoop to their level."
"That said, Crotalus will be your home for the next seven years. As long as you follow simple courtesies, we should have no problems. As I mentioned earlier, my office can be reached from the hall outside or from that door right there," she pointed it out. "Anyone is welcome to stop by at any time to discuss any subject. I'll do my best to resolve any issues or problems you may have, be it that you wish the Prairie Elves would make your favorite dish once in a while, or something much more significant. If you just want to talk to somebody about something, I can do that, too. Also, I encourage you to talk to your prefects, if you would rather talk to another student. That's why they were given badges."
She paused for another moment, then pointed toward the leftmost of the two staircases leading out of the room. "Boys, your dorms are up there. Girls, you have the stairs to the right. Look for the door with your year number on it. Boys are not permitted up the girls stairs, and neither are the girls allowed in the boys corridor. Any attempt to ignore this rule will be met with forceful and magical eviction." This was her favorite part of the speech, so she had kept it intact since she began making it. "As you have been duly warned, I will not accompany any student attempting such to the Hospital Wing. They will need to get there on their own." In all truth, they probably wouldn't need the Hospital Wing at all (she'd even heard stories that the Pecaris once called that particular effect the 'corridor ride') but she saw more harm than good in sharing that information. Implying it would result in serious personal injury was far more effective.
"Does anyone have any questions?"
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Deputy Headmistress Amelia Pierce
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