Head of House Speech on Aladren Commons

Professor Fawcett

January 11, 2013 10:10 PM

Head of House Speech by Professor Fawcett

The way from the Cascade Hall to the Aladren common room was, after more than a decade here at Sonora as a teacher on top of seven years as a student in his youth, burned deep into John’s mind, a route he suspected he could walk in his sleep, but he took care to pay attention to his surroundings as he led the first years along it, pointing out useful landmarks to them as they progressed. They would, after all, have to learn their own way back and forth, and learn it quickly, so the sooner they started developing their mental maps of the school, the better.

It would, though, help that part of the route was not among the more complicated paths Sonora had to offer, as it led directly to the library doors. That was a communal location for the whole school, so hiding it away in a dark corner would not have been the best architectural decision the founders and their builders could have made. Once they were inside the vast room, they would have more twists and turns to learn, but getting this far was not, he thought, a terribly difficult task, and if necessary they would almost certainly be able to find some of their Housemates who could point them in the right direction among the stacks at any given time before curfew.

“Here,” he said, gesturing to the door, “is the entrance to the library, a location you will all become very familiar with over the next seven years, as our common room entrance is found inside it. You are still, however, expected to treat the library, our librarian Miss Diaz, and your fellow students from other Houses here with respect at all times. Now, please follow me.”

He led them through the stacks, at first progressing straight down the center aisle, but after a moment taking a left turn at the Defense Against the Dark Arts section, taking care to point out the sign designating it as such. Then he cut through Potions and Transfiguration, back through fiction, and then into nature, bringing them at last to the back wall, where he stopped by a worn book entitled Birds of Prey.

“Please remember this book, as you will need to pull on it to open the door to the common room,” he said. “The title, for those who do not know, is an allusion to our House mascot.”

He pulled on the book and a section of the shelves swung inward, opening a wide, square doorway. “And here we have the Aladren common room,” he concluded. “You must never tell any member of another House where it is, as only Aladrens may enter, as you may do now.”

John oversaw their first passing of the threshold before entering himself, closing the door behind him, giving them a few seconds to look around their new home. The Aladren common room was a generously-sized space, for one of the smaller Houses, and liberally sprinkled with comfortable chairs and couches, tables, and study areas. The best seats were around the impressive fireplace, which stood behind a large blue rug emblazoned with the black silhouette of a hawk, colors echoed in the rest of the room’s décor, except for the contents of the well-stocked bookshelves. A large bulletin board stood to the left of the main entrance, and across from it was another opening, this one leading to stairs. John gestured the first years to the chairs and sofa around the fire as he took up his position on the rug to give his start-of-term address.

“Welcome,” he said, “to Aladren. I am, as I said before, Professor Fawcett, your Head of House and Potions professor, and this will be your home for the next seven years. I trust that you will all follow in the footsteps of the many who have come here before you and do it proud. Our House colors, as you’ve no doubt noticed, are blue and black, and our mascot is the hawk.

“Our House prefects are Nora Dobson, who you heard announced at the Feast, Russell Layne of the sixth year, and James Owen in the seventh year. The current Head Boy, David Wilkes, is also an Aladren, and is also our House Quidditch captain, with Arnold Carey as his assistant captain. If you have questions or concerns you would prefer to address with another student, rather than me, they will all be glad to assist you. We are known as a competitive House, an independent House, and we are both of those things, but your House is still your family at Sonora as much as anyone else’s. We do look after our own.”

Some might debate that, but the prefects and captains were under obligations, and he believed a desire to keep winning did generally keep the Aladrens pretty united. “Curfew is at ten. You may, if you choose, spend time in other parts of the school besides other common rooms, but you must be back here, in the Aladren common room, by ten each night. Your dormitories are up those stairs; the boys are down the corridor to your left, girls on your right. Do not attempt to enter the set of dormitories which are not yours, as you will be magically prevented from doing so. You should also check the bulletin board – “ he pointed to it – “regularly, as announcements about the Quidditch team and special activities will often go there.”

As usual, he ran a mental check to make sure he had covered the important points and did not find himself lacking. “Here are your class schedules,” he said, passing them around. “You’ll begin your classes tomorrow after breakfast. Some leniency may be allowed as you’re learning your way around, but I suggest doing your best to be on time – ask directions. You will have most of your classes with the second years, who can be helpful to you in that way. Are there any questions before you go to your dormitories?”

OOC: Welcome to Sonora! You may now post on any board (except, of course, other common rooms!). Keep the posting rules (at least 200 words, no godmodding or powerplaying, realism for your character's level, and good spelling and grammar) in mind, and have fun!

Subthreads:

Staying quiet by Analea Thornton

0 Professor Fawcett Head of House Speech 0 Professor Fawcett 1 5

Analea Thornton

January 25, 2013 2:19 PM

Staying quiet by Analea Thornton

Analea stuck by Rory the whole time. She was too afraid that other people would make fun of the way she spoke, but she was almost sure even, that her new friend would have her back if anyone did make fun of her. They pair ate their food, and finally their Head of House gathered the first year Aladrens together.

He introduced himself as Professor Fawcett and walked them out of the Hall, pointing out important landmarks to them as they walked. They reached what Professor Fawcett called the Library and told them that the entrance to their Common Room was inside the Library. He led them through the stacks and Analea tried super hard to remember where he went, but had a feeling that she'd get herself lost trying to go to her room, or even from her room! Ana tried to remember which book it was that her Head of House had pulled out, but she knew she could always ask Andri if she forgot.

He'd pulled the book out and the shelves swung inward to reveal a doorway. “Wow...” she said, nodding when she heard Professor Fawcett tell them that nobody but Aladrens were allowed to enter there. Ana followed alongside the others, not going too far from Rory's side, feeling safe with her. She sat down next to Rory and their Head of House stood on the rug in front of them. He told them what they needed to know, and Analea's mind whirred, trying to remember it all.

Professor Fawcett passed out their schedules for classes and Analea listened as he'd asked if there were any questions. She had plenty, but she was afraid to ask them. Her lisp had done that to her.

0 Analea Thornton Staying quiet 0 Analea Thornton 0 5