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last online Mar 28, 2024 11:53:12 GMT -7
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Apr 20, 2017 9:47:42 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on Apr 20, 2017 9:47:42 GMT -7
The absence of Professor Longbottom from the High Table had not gone unnoticed that morning at breakfast, and, by the evening, word was that he was so ill that he had been taken to St. Mungo's for treatment beyond what the Hospital Wing could provide. While she hadn't grown up around his children or even known the man's name before she had come to Hogwarts, Gwendolen Maddox, like so many others, had grown to look up to him. Ever since he had been appointed Headmaster, Gwen knew that he had always done his best to protect the school—one of the reasons why she had remained at Hogwarts in spite of the dangers that threatened Muggle-born students like herself.
She wondered how much Xanthippe had seen or heard in the Hospital Wing. Because he was Professor Longbottom, she imagined that the staff must have done everything they could to ensure his privacy. If the nurses were able to treat Xan effectively from the school, though, Gwen knew that their headmaster's being sent to the actual magical hospital couldn't have been good for his prognosis. Whatever had happened to him, it was severe. So many of the things that required hospitalization in the Muggle world were treated as though they were just a scrape. Bones could be broken, set, and even grown again from nothing; there were potions and pastes for nearly everything imaginable, and the school nurses seemed to know it all.
It was unsettling, Gwen felt, not to know what was happening again. There was an explanation for everything, but being left in the dark about it—knowing that she couldn't help the situation—didn't make it easy to focus on her assignments that night. After about five minutes of attempting to read in the library, she had resigned herself to the fact that she probably wouldn't be getting anything done and got up, stepping just outside of it.
Warming up her voice, she paced back and forth along the corridor, hoping that her voice wouldn't carry too far back inside to disturb the students who were still able to concentrate.
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last online Mar 28, 2024 11:53:12 GMT -7
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Apr 25, 2017 22:08:01 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on Apr 25, 2017 22:08:01 GMT -7
Word hadn't reached the students yet that Professor McGonagall would be returning to Hogwarts to replace their headmaster. Neville's health had taken a turn for the worse. If you asked her, she personally thought it had to do with how much time he spent in those greenhouses. It was only bound to happen that he'd get hurt or ill from something eventually. Poor lad. He most certainly had not been the brighest boy of his year but he'd been a determined fellow. And when he set his mind to something he would eventually get it. Fate had caught up to him though. She'd just left her new office, the Headmaster (or in this case Headmistress)'s office after meeting with the Minister and Harry Potter and was now taking a stroll through the school. It wasn't like she would ever forget the school's many passages, she'd called the school her home the majority of her life. She knew Hogwarts better then herself. But it had been eight years, and the castle often had a mind of it's own. Already she'd found Peeves, who'd gone shrieking at the top of his poltergeist lungs up the staircase in his usual fashion. Unfortunately the poltergeist seemed to have changed little in eight years. With a huff, she continued on her walk, stopping just long enough to clean up the vulgar words Peeves had been writing on a classroom door.
The next corridor she went down would lead to the library, and it was there she met her first student. The young brunette was completely unfamiliar. The most likely reason? Minerva did not know either of the girl's parents. That could mean any number of things. Muggle born, foreigner, or perhaps her parents had been home schooled. That did happen on occasion. Some Wizarding Families were odd like that. "Taking a break from the library?" She asked in a friendly fashion as her path brought her close enough to the girl to speak.
@gwendolen (haha, couldn't pass it up, because it's talking about Neville XD)
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last online Mar 28, 2024 11:53:12 GMT -7
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Apr 26, 2017 18:29:44 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on Apr 26, 2017 18:29:44 GMT -7
Gwendolen had begun to wring her hands as she continued with her vocal warm-up, still pacing. After some time, she turned back to the direction from which she had first come and was met by an elderly woman whom she was certain she had seen before. Her eyes met the woman's, and she stopped vocalizing.
“Taking a break from the library?”
She then stopped walking back and forth and brought her hands back down to her sides, trying to recall how she knew who the woman—who was clearly Scottish—was. The woman must have been nearly ninety, and the way that she spoke made her seem as though she posed no threat. It was certainly unusual to see a stranger at Hogwarts; even the foreign delegations weren't strange to see around, although she didn't know all the students by name.
Anyone who was at Hogwarts had a reason for being there. The Aurors ensured that no one who wasn't meant to be there could loiter, although the Floo Network was tightly regulated and the castle's location Unplottable. Gwen's first thought was that the elderly woman must have been someone's grandmother, but that didn't answer why she had been so conversational.
“Yes,” she nodded, “I—”
But Gwen had seen this woman before; she knew it. The woman was too familiar for her never to have seen her. Where else, though, could she have seen her? No, it couldn't have been…
Coming across as rude was Gwen's last intention, especially if the woman was who she thought she was. “Sorry,” she paused in awe, “but are you Professor McGonagall?”
@headmistress
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last online Mar 28, 2024 11:53:12 GMT -7
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Apr 27, 2017 21:17:42 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on Apr 27, 2017 21:17:42 GMT -7
Minerva was right, she really didn't know this girl's parents. By the robes the girl was a Ravenclaw, probably a sixth or seventh year from her height and appearance. Her expression didn't change as the student started to speak, but stopped. As if trying to think of something. What that was... Well, Minerva wasn't the guessing sort. So, instead she decided to come to a stop, waiting to see just what tis teenager might have to say to a complete stranger.
And what that was? Asking if she was Professor McGonagall. How she was recognized.... Well, she knew there weren't any portraits of her up. They were preparing the Headmistress portrait, had been preparing it for years, but it wouldn't be hung until after her death. It couldn't be from personal experience because none of the current students had been around when she'd first stepped down. So.... Ah. The chocolate frog card. Of course. "Yes. Yes I am. And you are?" She stated without hesitation.
@gwendolen
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last online Mar 28, 2024 11:53:12 GMT -7
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Apr 28, 2017 8:49:57 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on Apr 28, 2017 8:49:57 GMT -7
It would have been embarrassing for her if she had been wrong, but Gwen was in the presence of the Professor McGonagall. She had been in the presence of some well-known people before, but usually she hadn't even known that they were famous until after she had met them. Professor McGonagall had been the Headmistress of Hogwarts before, which was a possible explanation as to why she was there. With Professor Longbottom at St. Mungo's, the decisions fell to Professor Malfoy, who had been made Deputy Headmistress only recently. It made sense that she would want someone to advise her.
Gwen was surprised when Professor McGonagall asked her name, although she hoped that it wasn't because she was about to be scolded for having disturbed the students in the library. She smiled despite feeling slightly nervous. “Gwendolen Maddox,” she said, extending her right hand for a handshake. “I've read about you, but I never thought I'd actually meet you, like.”
@headmistress
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last online Mar 28, 2024 11:53:12 GMT -7
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May 12, 2017 18:48:04 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on May 12, 2017 18:48:04 GMT -7
Maddox. The name didn't ring any bells, and Minerva knew in that moment why this girl didn't look familiar. Because she truly didn't know the girl's parents. "Your parents?" She asked, only for confirmation. Muggleborn, or foreign. The girl was offering a hand to shake her own. While she wasn't much for shaking hands, manners won over preference. So, stepping forward Minerva gave the girl a firm but brief handshake. Mentioning that she'd read about Minerva wasn't exactly something the older woman was expected. Though she was flattered, she wasn't one for the spotlight. "You've no doubt read about many witches and wizards far greater then myself. Many still alive as well." It was a modest answer, but Minerva wasn't the sort to flaunt her abilities. She knew she was talented, of course. Because no one could survive the wars or become headmistress without some degree of ability.
"What year are you?" She asked after a moment,
@gwendolen
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last online Mar 28, 2024 11:53:12 GMT -7
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May 12, 2017 20:17:19 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on May 12, 2017 20:17:19 GMT -7
“Your parents?”
“Oh, no,” Gwendolen said kindly with a shake of her head. She brought her arm down to her side after shaking hands with the professor and felt slightly embarrassed because she hadn't even considered that she might have confused her. “You wouldn't know my parents, Professor.” Hesitantly smiling, she explained herself. ”I'm Muggle-born.”
Professor McGonagall said that she had undoubtedly read about “many” witches and wizards who had done things far greater than those that she herself had accomplished. Gwen appreciated the humility, but that didn't change her thinking that standing before this woman who was so well-known in the magical world was almost like standing before a goddess. She had decades upon decades of firsthand knowledge of Hogwarts and the wizarding world as a whole; she had worked alongside the Albus Dumbledore!
The woman asked her for her year, and Gwen answered quickly but politely. “I'm a sixth year,” she told her. “I'm in Ravenclaw.” Professor McGonagall had been in Gryffindor House; she knew that because the woman had been the Head of Gryffindor, too.
“Can you tell me anything about Professor Longbottom?” she asked after a pause, not sure how else to broach the topic. The headmaster was entitled to his privacy, of course, but not knowing anything but rumors wasn't helping her state of mind. “Is he alright, like?” She hoped he was. “Do you… know when he'll be back?”
@headmistress
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last online Mar 28, 2024 11:53:12 GMT -7
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May 29, 2017 12:17:21 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on May 29, 2017 12:17:21 GMT -7
Muggle born. Minerva nodded in understanding as the student confirmed one of her suspicions. She had been on track after all. "Yes, I thought you didn't look familiar. And do you enjoy Hogwarts?" Minerva knew the magical community could take quite some getting used to. Her own father had been muggle, and her mother had kept it a secret from him far longer then she should have.
One thing to know about Minerva was she didn't hold back much. And had quite the silver tongue when desired. So when the girl admitted her year, she nodded. At the mention of the house though... "Its good to know they didn't change the House uniforms during my absence." the Ravenclaw uniform did give away the girl's house quite well. Minerva herself had almost been in Ravenclaw. The Sorting Hat had spent more then five minutes debating between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw.
Ah, Professor Longbottom. Of course the students wanted to know about him. While it wasn't a secret she was taking his place it also hadn't been announced publicly. "He will be taking the rest of the school year off for health reasons. I'll be taking his place." For how long... as long as Hogwarts needed her.
@gwendolen
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last online Mar 28, 2024 11:53:12 GMT -7
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Jul 4, 2017 10:37:34 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on Jul 4, 2017 10:37:34 GMT -7
Did she enjoy Hogwarts? Well, Gwendolen certainly didn’t dislike it. How could she dislike it, when there were such wonderful people from two foreign schools also visiting the castle? She had learned more from her professors at Hogwarts than she had ever dreamed possible. Her subjects at Hogwarts were the stuff of fairytales in the Muggle world, after all. It was true that the lack of support for the arts was Hogwarts’s main deficit, but involvement in clubs kept her occupied. There were plenty of Muggle schools that didn’t particularly favor the arts, either, and she couldn’t say no to having a professor who also happened to be a working stage actress. “Yes, Professor,” Gwen answered. “I love it here.”
The professor made a comment about how she was glad to see that the uniforms hadn’t changed at all since she had been away from the school, and Gwen gave a slight nod. For as long as she had been there, at least, the uniforms at Hogwarts had remained the same. That didn’t exempt people from taking the occasional creative liberty with what they were supposed to wear, though she hadn’t ever seen anyone use correction fluid for manicures or anything like that. (No one really needed it, anyway, since they could correct mistakes with a few simple spells.)
“He will be taking the rest of the school year off for health reasons.”
The answer that Professor McGonagall provided about the headmaster didn't reassure Gwendolen that Professor Longbottom was going to be alright, but it did assure her that things would be alright at Hogwarts without him.
“I'll be taking his place.”
If she had heard her correctly, Professor McGonagall—the famed witch herself—was returning to the school as its headmistress. Gwen was still upset for Professor Longbottom’s sake and thought that it must have been dreadful for him to have had to make the decision to hand over the reins, but she was content to know that life at school wasn't going to change drastically. They were all as safe as they had ever been. It would be a change, but Gwen didn't think that it would be a bad one.
She gave the old woman a relieved smile. “Welcome back to Hogwarts, Professor.” That same smile, however, turned slightly sheepish. “I… hope my singing didn't disturb you?” Getting in trouble for the one thing that had been calming for her wasn't something that Gwendolen was keen on doing, but she did think that she probably needed to move away from the library.
@headmistress
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