Beinvenidos a Arizona (Welcome to Arizona) on Aladren Commons

Professor Kijewski

June 15, 2006 10:29 PM

Head of House Speech (Cont'd from Cascade) by Professor Kijewski

Kiva walked through the halls of the school with Oscar in her arms and the children following close behind. Every-so-often if she took a passageway or back-tracked, she would pause briefly and make sure everyone was still with her.

Down the corridors and up the staircase. Down the hall and pausing before giant doors with signs about animals. They were standing in front of the library. "I'm about to show you exactly how to enter the Aladren Common room. You are not allowed to reveal this to anyone. Understand?" She asked, surveying the students around her. "Good. Now, my office is just that door there." She pointed to a door a little way down the hallway, "There is also an entrance to it in the common room. Quickly, follow me."

She led them into the library. Kiva paused briefly to see if Tarquin around to fetch his cat, but found that his door was only slightly adjar and Kiva didn't have the time to stop and check on him just yet. So, instead, she took the students through the maze of the library. Row after row of shelves covered in books, they walked between. There were many twists and turns throughout the isles of books that she was sure the students would become lost. Finally, they reached the last corner of the library. Her hands reached up and grasped an old tattered looking book called, Birds of Prey in reference to the Hawk. She pulled on it and the entrance to the Aladren commonroom was revealed. She gestured to the students to go through first and then followed them in after. The commonroom was a brilliant royal blue filled with large sofas and comfortable chairs. Shelves of books littered the walls and tables surrounded the room. There was a large fireplace against the wall, already lit to make the room a comfortable warm. An occassional painting or portrait decorated the walls.

Kiva set Oscar on the closest table, giving him a good scratch behind the ears before turning her attention to the first years. "Hello and welcome to Sonora Academy. This is the Aladren Common Room, your new home. I am your Head of House, Professor Kiva Kijewski. You may call my Professor K or just Kiva if my last name is too hard for you. Boys dorms are on the left and girls are on the right. Curfew is at 10. Anyone caught out after that is susceptable to punishment. My office is through that door there. You'll have to knock first before entering." Kiva told them, giving them a smile. "Classes start bright and early tomorrow morning, so try not to be late. There are plenty of older students around who, I'm sure, would be willing to help you out if you need it and you my come to me for anything. Also, the Quidditch Captain is Anne Wright and I'm sure she'll be posting a notice about Sign-ups very soon. Are there any questions?" \n\n

Subthreads:

Ah, the joys of reading by Grail (Gray) Markner

0 Professor Kijewski Head of House Speech (Cont'd from Cascade) 0 Professor Kijewski 1 5

Grail (Gray) Markner

June 16, 2006 1:08 PM

Ah, the joys of reading by Grail (Gray) Markner

Grail hadn't waited for Gary and August to follow her. She just up and followed the lady out. If they didn't want to come, fine. They'd be there soon enough. She knew the lady was leading them to Aladren, she was lucky at that. Who would have known what would happen if she found herself in a different house.

The lady seemed to be taking a very long time. She kept going back and around and everywhere. Grail almost got lost a few times. She looked around, wondering where the boys were. Hoping that if they did come, they hadn't gotten lost. She was so busy looking for them, she didn't notice when the others had stopped and she ran right into someone and fell. "Sorry," she smiled, blushing. Then looked up to listen to the lady.

"I'm about to show you exactly how to enter the Aladren Common room. You are not allowed to reveal this to anyone. Understand?"

Gray found herself nodding. Of course she understood. Why would she tell anyone anyway? She once again began to walk with the other students, waiting to get to a door when, instead, she found herself among books. She frowned. Sure she loved books, but why were they going here? She looked around. It was like a maze! How would they ever find this place. She stopped once again in frount of a shelf.

She only saw a little of the lady as she pulled off a book. And then she saw her commons. Wow, she thought, surprised. Magic is cool! She grinned, seeing that, she couldn't wait to start learning it! She walked in with everyone else and looked around. It was a nice place. She knew she'd enjoy it. And the fire, oh, it looked so warm.

She sat on a near sofa while listening to her head of house. Kiva... what? Okay, She'd stick with Kiva. The rules were pretty much natural. They had a curfew and dorms and such. Classes would start tomorrow. Quidditch. And, no, she had no questions. So instead she stood up and looked to see if August and Gary followed. \n\n

16 Grail (Gray) Markner Ah, the joys of reading 113 Grail (Gray) Markner 0 5

August Todvin

June 16, 2006 4:02 PM

Finally, Aladren House! by August Todvin

August trailed behind the group of Aladren first years as they followed Professor Kijewski. She was, in fact, their head of house, and a teacher. The walk seemed to take forever, and August noticed that more than once, they actually seemed to be going around in circles. He really didn't pay much attention, otherwise, and he knew he was going to be very lost for a while. But at that moment, he really didn't care. Gray, the girl he thought was his friend, had walked further ahead the entire time, never even looking around once to see if August was there or not. She obviously didn't want to be seen "in public" with him. He had hoped that Gary might find him, but there didn't seem to be any sign of him, either. He must have been up ahead, mixed in with the rest of the group.

They arrived at the Library, and Professor K. indicated that the entrance to their common room was within. Once again, they were led through a seemingly endless maze of pathways and bookcases, and finally they came to a stop in a far corner. The Professor touched a book called "Birds of Prey" and suddenly, the bookcase disappeared, revealing in its place the entrance to a very comfortable looking room.

As he entered what would most likely be his home for the next seven years, August's mood lifted a little. The place was decorated in a nice shade of blue, and contained lots of soft furniture, books, and even a fireplace. At least the books would give him something to do. The Professor pointed out where their dorm rooms would be, and explained where her office was, how the curfew worked, and how to sign up for Quidditch. With that, her speech was over, and everyone was left to explore their new surroundings.

August wanted nothing more than to get away from everyone before Gray or anyone else had a chance to single him out and begin ridiculing him, or something, so he immediately made for the corridor that led to the boys' dormitory, glancing around quickly to see if Gary was anywhere nearby. He figured he might as well go ahead and get settled in and get used to his new room. The only problem was that the Common Room was so crowded with first years and other students, that he couldn't go straight across, and instead he had to slowly weave his way around everyone. He didn't even notice that he was approaching the spot where Gray was standing, and he bumped right into her.

"Sorry," he mumbled, and he tried to keep moving, but it was so crowded that there wasn't a clear path just then. He glanced over at Gray and then stared at his shoes, his thoughts from earlier echoing through his mind. "Gray doesn't seem like the kind of person who would be mean," he thought to himself. He looked up at her again, and managed a weak grin. "So what do you think of this place?" he asked, scowling a little as he looked back down at his shoes again.\n\n

0 August Todvin Finally, Aladren House! 0 August Todvin 0 5

Gray

June 16, 2006 6:09 PM

Ha! Aladren rules! by Gray

When Gray finally found one of them, August, he'd bumped into her. He'd seemed to be trying to get away from her, and she didn't know why. She didn't want him to though, he was her only friend so far besides Gary (who she still couldn't find). Before he could go she hooked onto his arm and he had started talking. Oh, so he wasn't going to go. She blushed and let go.

"Oh, er..." she looked around again. She thought it was very nice. Beautiful and homey. "It's very nice," she grinned. "I think it's pretty homey, cozy-like, you know?" She grabbed his arm and pulled him outside the criwd of people. It was getting too warm in there.

"What do you think of it? Or what about the Head? She seems pretty nice," she smiled. Then she looked around, not wanting to leave Gary behind. "Did Gary come with you?" she asked, not wanting to leave him behind as well. Seeing as how August reacted when he saw her, she felt a little guilty for leaving so abruptly.\n\n

16 Gray Ha! Aladren rules! 113 Gray 0 5

Nikki Ramirez

June 16, 2006 11:06 PM

Foreign Girl by Nikki Ramirez

As soon as Nikki got into her new common room she had found a quiet corner to sit in. She was not usually shy, but tonight she had definately made an exception. Her blonde hair and fair skin may have given her the appearence that she blonged here, but that wasn't the case in her opinion. Or rather, she didn't know if she belonged here or not.

She had not been planning on atttending Sonora. She had been planning on staying in Mexico and attending the school her father had. But then she got a letter from the United States. She supposed it had been because her mother was an American. Then again, her mother was a Muggle, so she wasn't sure how that had worked out. Apparently this school was more prestigious and would look better in heer future.

So now she had been shipped away to Arizona, where she didn't know anyone and she was really confused. She knew the language, but she was still nervous about being in a new country. At least she had Alexo, her cat. And at least she was in Aladren, where she was so close to the library that she could read her free time away.

She looked up from her book as two students, a boy and a girl walked past her, apparently looking for someone named Gary.

"Hello," Nikki said with her Mexican accent "Do you need help to find your friend?" As soon as she said it, she regretted it. Now they would think she was some helpful older student. She was tall enough after all, and they didn't know her.\n\n

0 Nikki Ramirez Foreign Girl 0 Nikki Ramirez 0 5

August

June 17, 2006 10:58 PM

People, people everywhere, and none of them are Gary. by August

August suddenly felt stupid for thinking the way he did about Gray. This was what his mother had meant about shutting people out. Gray actually seemed happy to see him, and she had yet to do anything that could be considered "ridiculing" August or otherwise making his life hard, yet here he was, already acting like he was back at his old school, expecting that the worst would happen. Right then and there, he made a pact with himself that he'd give people a fair chance, especially when they hadn't given him any reason to do otherwise. So now, on top of feeling stupid, August was mad at himself, and it showed in the scowl on his face. He hated feeling this way; he really was his own worst enemy.

Gray had slipped her arm through his, but only briefly, and she asked him what he thought about all of the new stuff they'd just seen. Trying to shake himself of his black mood, he shrugged his shoulders. "It's pretty cool, I guess," he replied, still looking at his shoes. "I like that the common room is so close to the library and all of the books. I didn't pay much attention while we were walking, though, so I'll probably never be able to find it again. Professor K. seems pretty cool, I guess." He managed half a grin, and he craned his neck to try to look around the room, but it didn't do much good considering that he was one of the shortest people in there. "I haven't seen Gary since we left Cascade," he said. "Maybe he's still there finishing all the desserts?" A soft chuckle escaped his lips, and he began to relax, though he was really hoping that Gary would show up so the two of them could go and check out their rooms together. It would be easier walking among all the older boys with a friend, rather than alone.

At that moment, a girl who had been quietly reading a book looked at Gray and August and asked if they needed any help. She spoke with an accent. "Oh, um, well...." August said, not sure what to say. He couldn't tell if she was an older student or not, and he didn't want to look like a lost first year to her, even though that's what he was. Plus, the older students were probably just waiting to play a prank on the younger ones, and August wasn't falling for it. "No, I don't think so," August said, coolly. "We were eating with a guy back in Cascade but now we can't find him. He's not hard to miss, anyway, he's got real curly hair and glasses. But thanks."

He waited to see if Gray wanted to add anything more to what he'd just said, and continued to look around the room for Gary. He was kind of curious about the girl who'd just spoken to him, though. She had that weird accent, and August thought that people from other countries would have attended schools closer to home, but maybe that wasn't always the case. He turned back to face the girl. "Hey, no offense or anything, but I was just wondering where you were from," he said, softly, suddenly feeling embarrassed for asking such a question. "I mean, it's just that you talk with that accent...." He let his voice trail off, knowing he probably sounded as though he didn't like the girl just because of that. "I mean, it's a nice accent. I was just wondering is all. My name is August, by the way." He looked at his shoes and ran a hand through his shaggy hair, feeling his cheeks growing warm and wishing that he could just talk to people like everyone else could.\n\n

0 August People, people everywhere, and none of them are Gary. 0 August 0 5

Nikki

June 21, 2006 10:41 PM

Re: People, people everywhere, and none of them are Gary. by Nikki

The girl laughed. "I'm Nikki." she said "I'm from Mexico" she pronounced it the Spanish way 'Meh-hee-co.' "I know I don't look like it. I got my mother's pale skin. I don't really know how I got on the list to come here, but Arizona has a large wizarding population."

"I'm surprised the Muggles haven't figured it out yet. Phoenix. The beautiful red rocks in Sadona. All those wildfires lately that they can't contain. There are at least six different climate zones in the state; usually you have to travel thousands of kilo... I mean miles to get to from one climate zone to another."

She noticed for the first time now, that August looked nervous and embaressed. She let her gaze fall. "But you don't care do you? I suppose you don't want to be seen talking to the little Mexican first year. You don't want my help at least." She returned to her book.

Nikki had never truely believed the things Tio Carlos told her about Americans, but if this August was a good example of an American, then Tio Carlos was right about some things. Namely that they were careless and didn't think before they spoke. Then again, maybe she could learn to accept this and get along with the boy. She hoped so.\n\n

0 Nikki Re: People, people everywhere, and none of them are Gary. 0 Nikki 0 5

Nikki

June 21, 2006 10:45 PM

Beinvenidos a Arizona (Welcome to Arizona) by Nikki

0 Nikki Beinvenidos a Arizona (Welcome to Arizona) 0 Nikki 0 5

August

June 23, 2006 4:20 PM

Open mouth, insert foot by August

The girl with the funny accent turned out to be named Nikki, and August listened as she explained that she was, in fact from Mexico. He nodded his head in agreement when she talked about all the strangeness in Arizona that was, as they all knew, courtesy of the state's large wizarding population. Suddenly, Nikki seemed to feel that August didn't like her, and she got quiet and stuck her head back in her book.

"No, no, it's cool," August said, quickly. "I didn't know you were a first year. I mean, I'm a first year, too. I guess I didn't notice you at the feast. I thought you might have been some older student who was gonna play a joke on me, or something. And I was thinking to myself that I didn't think people from other countries would come here. But there's no reason why they shouldn't...." It was his turn to go quiet, now. "I'm sorry," he mumbled. "I didn't mean to sound like I was insulting you. I do want your help, but I figured you wouldn't know who Gary was, anyway."

He looked down at the floor for a moment, until his embarrassment passed, and then looked around the room again. He really hoped Gary would show up, but it was looking like August would just have to catch up with him some other time. The room was still very crowded, so he decided to stay put for the time being, rather than trying to head toward the boys' dormitories. He searched his mind for something to talk about, but he was never very good at such things. His eyes slid to the book in the girl's hands and he looked back up at her. "What book are you reading?" he asked. "I like books, too. Isn't it cool that Aladren House is right next to the library?"

He gave Nikki a shy smile, hoping she'd want to talk to him after his little "foot in mouth" episode from earlier. There was nothing he hated more than standing alone in a crowded room.\n\n

0 August Open mouth, insert foot 0 August 0 5

Nikki

June 23, 2006 5:56 PM

Re: Open mouth, insert foot by Nikki

Nikki brushed her hair out of her eyes and held up the large, leather-bound book for August to see. It was a Shakespearian canon, a book containing the complete works of William Shakespeare. She lowered it.

"I'm used to being teased." she said "My mother is a Muggle and she made me go to a Muggle primary school because she wanted me to be more emersed in her culture. They teased my brother, Julio, and me because we were different. And my brother, Benito, is a Squib so he joined in."

"I was going to go to Youmens, that's the wizarding school in Cholula, like Julio did, but when I got accepted here, it was off to America to be the new little foreign girl."

"But yes, it is nice to have a common room next to, well actually within the library. I love books; I'll read anything. Well, except one of those History of Magic textbooks from Youmens; they must weigh at least..." she thought for a minute, converting the weights in her head. It was difficult when one thought in liters and kilograms yet was in a place that used gallons and pounds. She was sure this would cause her to mess up in potions. "...ten pounds" she decided.\n\n

0 Nikki Re: Open mouth, insert foot 0 Nikki 0 5

Gray

June 26, 2006 2:21 PM

Butting back in by Gray

Gray smiled at August. He didn't seem angry with her. That was good. She opened her mouth to speak to him again, something about wanting to talk a bit before they went to seperate dorms. Something about finding Gary, or making a joke about the Cascade Hall. But then another girl came up.

Grail knew she was some sort of Hispanic. Her voice and complexion said it all. She wanted to see if they needed help. Finding Gary. Gray was about to say it would be nice, this girl looked about there age. August and Gary wouild have each other when they went to their dorms and Gray didn't want to be alone. But August had already said no.

They both talked a bit. Gray didn't want to bother them. They both seemed to be not... what was it?... Mud-Mub-Muggle... Muggle-born. So she was a bit confused with a little of their talk. She drifted in and out of their conversation, while looking around the room for Gary. He had to be here somewhere... right?

She decided she was bored and wanted an in on the conversation. It seemed to be on books. She didn't know what they were talking about though, so she looked a little closer at it. Shakepeare? She smiled. She'd only read Hamlet (and it was in a vague form) and she'd seen one of the Romeo and Juliet movies, but it was a start.

"I'm glad too," she said, referring to the commons being next to the library. "I also love reading. Mainy fantasy. But I've read a bit of Shakespeare" if the movie and play counted "he's pretty good. Not my cup of tea though." She bit her lip. "My favorite is the Wizard of OZ," that one sentence came out in more of a whisper. She was blushng, not knonwing if she was blabbing too much. She could just hear Chali now.

"Why don't you just shut up. Nobody cares about a book. Stop blabbing, people will think you're weird. And if they think you are, what will they say about Libby and me?"

She sighed and stopped talking. Looking down. Chali, Libby, and Alice had all said something like that to her once. Instinctivley, her left hand went to play with the beads on her right. She didn't want people here to think she was weird. She looked at August then Nikki. Did they think she was blabbing on?

"Sorry..." she muttered. "Didn't mean to... butt in..."\n\n

16 Gray Butting back in 113 Gray 0 5