An active, character-driven Hogwarts experience set in the early 2000s. Unique items, plots, and features. Non-canon; this isn't Harry Potter's story, it's ours.
The cloudy sky, with zero threat of rain, offered a welcome reprieve from yesterday's rain -- though a few Quidditch enthusiasts were bitter about the timing.
The temperature continued to drop -- with more scarves, beanies, and gloves making an appearance throughout the school. Despite the neutral weather or yesterday's match, few were in particularly good spirits this morning. Not counting tomorrow's Quidditch match between Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff, today was the last day of term before the Christmas holidays. So close, yet not close enough.
But once it was over, they'd be free of classes and homework until January. Though O.W.L and N.E.W.T students felt there was never truly a break from the studying, even over the upcoming holidays.
News had spread that it was supposed to be an especially busy day today, thus many dreaded even glancing at their timetables. Several Professors already looked tired, and some had rolls of parchment with them to check things over. The atmosphere was attentive, mixed with bracing oneself for an exhausting day ahead.
As if summoned by such, student schedules were magically assigned to everyone who sat at their house table. And the news proved true, as several years even had night classes -- a rarity at Hogwarts, and typically a sign of rather unusual lessons. The dread was only partially offset for any older students who had Field Trips today.
However, there were murmurs of confusion among the 4th years, who had an unknown extra event added to their timetables -- which 5th years groaned at, and huddled together to whisper about yet none of it made sense to eavesdroppers. N.E.W.T students feigned ignorance, as to not spoil anything.
Morning Classes 4th years -- Charms 5th years -- Transfiguration 6th years -- Potions 6th years -- History of Magic
Quidditch Practice [Ravenclaw]
Afternoon Classes 2nd years -- Potions 4th years -- DADA 5th years -- History of Magic 6th years -- Charms Field Trip
Quidditch Practice [Hufflepuff]
Night Classes 6th years -- Academics
Founder's Frivolity -- please wait outside the Ballroom. Mandatory for 4th years. Optional for 5th years.
A reminder that the way we run Quidditch Practices has changed -- now exempt from the can't be in two places at once rule, similar to classes. Players aren't hindered by anything else happening during the RPG day, and members can still RP their free time etc.
Full details will be explained in the practice threads. An overview of such is already noted of in the "Practices" section of the Quidditch Rules & Gameplay guide.
Owl Post will arrive soon with the Daily Prophet. Morning class threads and Quidditch Practice threads will be available for posting in once Breakfast ends. If there aren't students in a particular year, that class won't occur; 1st, 3rd, and 7th year classes aren't listed on the schedule. 6th years COMC and Herbology also aren't listed this RPG year, due to not enough students taking it, though might happen off-screen for NPCs.
Post by Caine Hawke on Aug 26, 2023 2:39:47 GMT 10
He. Was. Tired.
Back to back detentions weren't really his forte but hey, at least, for the sounds of it, there was only one left. One more. Out of a sea of three! He could do this.
Plus, there was one great thing that was upon them! Something fun that he could tear into to forget his sore back and detention troubles: Quidditch Practice. Yes, yes, he couldn't wait for the evening when Quidditch Practice was upon them and they'd get the chance to see everyone all together.
And he'd be able to talk to everyone! Ughhhh he was stoked.
But, rather than allow himself to thrill about practice, instead he made his way over to the breakfast table, sliding into his normal spot to wait for his best friend who it felt like he'd not seen in eighty-four years! Maybe Yoshie would show up soon and he'd be able to tell him about the detention last night. Or... not.
He just wanted to see him! And he'd not told them of the other detention either... ugh he was starting to be weird about details and that so wasn't like him. But when did he have time for anything these days?
Post by Joshua Twiggs on Aug 26, 2023 2:59:45 GMT 10
By the time Joshua had finished with his hair this morning, Caine had already left the dorm. Which had him wonder if his best mate had even come in last night in the first place.
No, he was certain he had seen him on his bed when he'd got up. Or was that just pillows and blankets in the shape of a person?
When he entered the Great Hall for Breakfast however, he easily found Caine sitting in his usual spot.
Joshua gave him a hollow-hand slap on the back as he took the seat next to him. The amount of strength he had put into it (or rather the lack of it) wouldn't cause hurt, only a disproportionally loud sound.
"There he is. Apple of my eye." Joshua grabbed an apple and held it to his eye. "How're you up so early?"
A quick glance at their schedule had put him in a good mood. First Transfiguration, and later Quidditch practice? Now, that was a good day!
Although, he was also nervous about practice.
Oh, well.
"Didn't even hear you come in last night. Went alright?"
Post by Kamari Sagemore on Aug 26, 2023 3:12:37 GMT 10
Kamari woke with the sun as she did most days. Huddled beneath an army of blankets as she was, it took far too long for her to climb out of bed. But breakfast was important so she dressed quickly, preparing for her day, dressing in her robes, and gathering her supplies before making sure the rest of her morning tasks were complete. The list scribbled on the parchment beside her bed never seemed to fail her.
But she didn't wait for her sister this morning.
Instead, she strode from Gryffindor tower with a wave to the painting and slipped down the stairs as quickly as was safe.
So, stopping at the bottom she made her way into the Great Hall, sliding into a spot at the table and quickly scooping up some eggs and bacon onto her plate with toast and strawberry jam for extra oomph. She had plans! She had things to do, letters to hopefully receive and she was hoping for Papa's response to her previous letter within the day. If he wasn't swamped with work, that was.
She took hold of the schedule and smiled. Charms, then Defense! She was looking forward to the lessons! At least it was things that she was pretty skilled at.
Post by MJ Birdwhistle on Aug 26, 2023 4:12:47 GMT 10
Sitting at the Ravenclaw table, MJ didn't waste time in grabbing her schedule to study while she put together what she wanted for breakfast. Since it was colder now, she had her scarf on and decided a warm breakfast would be just the ticket.
She had no class in the morning but there was Quidditch practice for her team today and Potions in the afternoon for her year group.
MJ did her best not to wriggle with too much excitement. She was looking forward to Potions class and was eager to know what potion Professor Snape would teach them.
Working on a few easy potions outside of class definitely helped her feel a lot better about class and she really wanted to get top grades this year.
With some toast, scrambled eggs and sausages on her plate, MJ started to eat. She'd eat as quickly as possible so she could grab her copy of the Daily Prophet when it arrived and then hurry off to do her morning activities.
Post by William Doren on Aug 26, 2023 4:16:33 GMT 10
William sat at the end of the Slytherin table, as close to the door as possible (as usual). He wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone during Breakfast as chatting at meal times irked him.
It seemed pointless.
He studied his schedule with care, noting that he would need to grab his Transfiguration and History of Magic books before heading to his first class. That was more than doable.
His breakfast was simple -- porridge, a small touch of honey and then some fruit. He poured himself a glass of milk as well and then focused on his food. William kept his head down so he wouldn't invite anyone to strike up a conversation with him.
Even if he told his classmates how he felt about talking while eating, a lot of them either forgot or insisted on talking to him anyway.
Post by Kody Ashworth on Aug 26, 2023 4:33:53 GMT 10
As promised with Reena, Kody hung around the Ravenclaw table that morning. He couldn't spot any of his siblings and he got a few odd looks from other students but he ignored them.
While leaning against the table and trying to keep some space free for his siblings, Kody kept his eye on the door to the Great Hall.
A schedule landed next to his hand -- with his name on it! Kody still marvelled at how awesome and neat magic was and picked up the schedule to look at while he waited.
Charms and then DADA and then...
Huh?
Kody squinted at the schedule and then looked for a classmate so he could double-check. Lucky for him, his own house table was next to Ravenclaw's and he leaned over to a familiar face.
"Hey, Kamari, sorry, but do you have something called 'Founder's Frivolity' on your schedule?" Kody had never heard of it and Reena nor Jaxen had ever mentioned it. Nothing had been said about it over the summer either.
Hopefully it was just a mistake but he noticed how it had said it was mandatory (whatever that meant) for fourth years and optional for fifth years.
Post by Amber Lloyd on Aug 26, 2023 4:59:18 GMT 10
Amber woke up well-rested and got ready for the day rather quickly. Due to the dropping in temperatures, she decided to wrap her scarf around her neck and take her beanie with her as a precaution – but she couldn’t find either. Instead, she found a neatly folded yellow scarf and beanie, Hufflepuff style.
She blinked in surprise for a moment until she remembered that she had exchanged them with Joshua for their spying plan on Caine and Benjamin. However, they hadn’t swapped them back since.
She frowned. What should she do now? It felt odd to walk around in Hufflepuff clothes without Joshua nearby. She sighed and decided to put both items in her bag for now. She planned to find an opportunity later to exchange them, even if it meant going without a scarf for the time being.
Determined, she made her way to the Great Hall and briefly visited her house table to a get her schedule. After quick glance, she noticed that Quidditch practice was scheduled, which filled her with excitement as she headed over to the Hufflepuff table.
“Morning!” Amber cheerfully plopped down in front of Caine and greeted both her friends with a bright smile. She then helped herself to some scrambled eggs with sausages and poured a cup of tea.
She only heard a piece of their conversation, but something about Caine coming in late last night? At a full moon night? She raised an eyebrow and looked at Caine, but didn’t say a thing.
(OOC: mention of scarf exchange with permission)
Last Edit: Sept 28, 2023 4:31:40 GMT 10 by Amber Lloyd
Post by Reena Ashworth on Aug 26, 2023 5:06:54 GMT 10
Reena had stopped by at the end of the Slytherin table first to grab her schedule for the day. She gave Doren, who was seated there alone a polite, yet court greeting before she turned to head towards the opposite site of the Great Hall.
Kody was easy enough to spot at the Ravenclaw table and she smiled at him when she sat down opposite of him. The two of them got a few surprised glances from the nearest sitting Ravenclaws, some whispered excitedly and she felt like that was directed at her, but they didn't say anything about it.
Not against the rules, after all.
"Morning, Kody" Reena poured herself some mint tea. She gave the girl at the Gryffindor table friendly look, acknowledging her presence.
Kody had appeared to be talking to her, so she waited for her brother to either finish his conversation or include her. She busied herself with blowing on her tea and ignoring the Ravenclaws that occasionally glanced her way.
Surely the two of them at their siblings' House table would be clue enough for them to come join them, as Reena hadn't managed to get a hold of them last night.
"Hope you had a good night?", she said after some time, though wouldn't mind if Kody not answered.
She felt like her freshly styled hair and light make-up masked perfectly that she had in fact not had the greatest night. She had ended up falling asleep over a book, head on the table in the Common Room. It had been fairly disorienting, when she had come to in the middle of the night and had dragged herself to bed.
Last Edit: Aug 26, 2023 5:20:42 GMT 10 by Reena Ashworth: Forgot Kamari, forgive me. Lol
Post by Grace Babineaux on Aug 26, 2023 5:24:34 GMT 10
Mostly recovered from the events of the Quidditch game, although she was still emotionally hurt from losing, Grace went down for breakfast. Since she was a little tired, she just sat herself down at the Gryffindor table and looked at the schedule. A free morning for her? That sounded great!
Of course, now Grace was overwhelmed with decisions about how to spend her free time before the lesson with Snape, which would probably go horribly if she was being honest with herself. She could at least get her mind off of it by doing something fun in the morning. She stabbed an orange slice and moved it to her plate.
Post by Verity Ashworth on Aug 26, 2023 5:32:12 GMT 10
Verity's schedule looked full, but at least it wasn't dull classes like History of Magic. She doodled on her arm with a color-changing ink that she'd recently been allowed to borrow from one of her roommates. She looked up at the Ravenclaw table with a bit of confusion, since she wasn't sure exactly why Kody and Reena were there.
Still, she decided she'd sit by her cousins, if only because it gave her some protection from some of the first years that might bump into her and make her mess up her arm-doodle. She looked between them and Kamari, wondering if there was some secret sharing going on there.
"What's up?" Verity asked, looking between them. And then she grabbed a piece of toast. Just in case she had to talk a lot and didn't get time to eat breakfast before she had class.
Post by Arthur Hocking on Aug 26, 2023 5:41:10 GMT 10
Arthur felt rather well-rested when he walked down to the Hufflepuff table for Breakfast, a feeling that was taken away from him rather suddenly when he heard Reena's name being mentioned with Tae-Sang. Which didn't make any sense, of course. They were friends, and they studied together, but it wasn't like they were only allowed to hang out with each other.
Still. He would've at least liked to be informed about that kind of thing, since they were friends. But maybe Reena had been trying to keep it private. He should respect that, even if it did make him feel a little...weird.
He sat close enough to Joshua and Caine to be within earshot if either of them said something to him, but he was a little distracted--first, by spotting Reena at the Ravenclaw table instead of the Slytherin table, and second, by the Founders' Frivolity on the schedule.
Briefly forgetting that he was, in fact, a fifth year, Arthur panicked. Then, he realized he didn't technically have to go to. Then again, if he wanted to improve his dancing skills...
Arthur ate some scrambled eggs, which felt like he did at that moment. A little bit scrambled. Not to mention that there were classes to prepare for. History of Magic would probably go fine, but Transfiguration? Arthur gulped down some orange juice.
Post by Kamari Sagemore on Aug 26, 2023 5:42:22 GMT 10
She was content to eat her breakfast in silence but a familiar fellow fourth year voice broke her silence as her attention shifted upward toward Kody.
She watched him a moment before she pulled her schedule back toward herself and glanced over at it with a furrowed brow.
"I do," she responded, holding her schedule out for him to take so he could see it if he wished. Surely, they were similar but she wasn't wholly sure what it was. She'd not been told of it, and she wasn't a hundred percent sure it would be fun... would it be fun?
But it was on the schedule and mandatory so what choice did they have?
She glanced upward at a girl that greeted Kody and offered her a wave.
"Good morning! Would you want to join us? Oh! But I'm sure you have friends! Don't mind me!" She didn't want her to feel obligated to join them, that just wasn't her style.
Post by Elizabeth Doren on Aug 26, 2023 5:46:27 GMT 10
Elizabeth had arrived to the Slytherin table bright and early. She sat by William, who seemed to appreciate that mealtimes were for meals more than anything else. She pondered the schedule, seeing the words 'field trip' as well as a night class made her curious.
She hoped that the Academics class would involve some star-gazing, though she couldn't get too far ahead of herself. It wasn't an Astronomy class, after all. Even if it was happening at night. She glanced at William when she read about the Founders' Frivolity, but he was a fifth year now. Optional.
She did briefly search the tables for Charlotte, who was not old enough to go or be told about such things. Either because Charlotte was young and therefore short or because she hadn't arrived yet, Elizabeth didn't see her.
As she continued to eat her silent breakfast, Elizabeth considered what the holidays meant for her. Not to mention, her family. She supposed one of the things to do today would be to write Tolliver for any updates about her parents, but she couldn't get into the owl-writing mindset enough to do so.
Post by Alora Sagemore on Aug 26, 2023 5:52:15 GMT 10
When Alora woke up, she quickly got dressed and was on her way to breakfast as soon as possible. She was excited about the possibility of receiving a response from her parents regarding the letter she had sent. And she wanted to know if Kamari did as well.
Though she had the urge to rush, she held back, but still managed to slither over the floor, only just managing to regain her balance by flailing her arms. Alora cast a quick look around and was glad to see no witnesses to her mishap.
With a straight posture, she entered the Great Hall and headed straight for the Gryffindor table, taking a seat in front of her sister.
“Howzit?” Alora greeted Kamari with a warm smile, then turned to Kody beside her and offered a friendly wave and smile as well.
Though as they seemed to discuss today’s schedule, Alora didn’t want to interrupt and turned her attention to her own appearing schedule. However, her mood shifted abruptly from happy (for having the whole morning free) to feeling dejected a second later – clearly reflected on her face.
They had potions in the afternoon.
Her day was doomed. She was doomed.
She sincerely hoped she would survive class – either her own potions or Snape. Or both.
Alora sighed and put some toast on her plate. Maybe she should just plan her morning first, then tackle the afternoon as it came.
She looked up and spotted Grace near her. A known and friendly face! Her faced lit up.
“Hi! Got any exciting plans for the morning before the world collapses in the afternoon?” Alora joked with a grin, glancing at Grace.