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Post by Rowan Trace on Aug 16, 2011 16:52:30 GMT -5
"Two years," Rowan said. "And learning your way around is pointless, at least at this point. Staircases move, rooms move, so just give yourself extra time to go the long way around." It put him in class early most days, but now and then he walked in with five minutes instead of twenty.
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Post by Shianni Veridian Trace on Aug 16, 2011 17:08:17 GMT -5
"Really?" Shianni asked, looking around her. Did that mean that it was possible to come down the same hallway another day and find a door where the blank wall stood? "Interesting..." She trailed a hand along the stone wall, wondering at the possibilities of such a place. "Do the towers stay in place? Or, say, do their entrances somehow move?"
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Post by Rowan Trace on Aug 16, 2011 17:12:39 GMT -5
"The towers stay, the common rooms and the Great Hall, the ones that tend to move are washrooms, storage rooms, and the occasional classroom. You'll be fine." That was what people really wanted to know. How would this affect them? It had left students with the occasional excuse of I got lost on the way to class, but he was under no obligation to let them slide for it.
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Post by Shianni Veridian Trace on Aug 16, 2011 18:20:17 GMT -5
"Hmm." It was certainly interesting, that the very stones themselves changed on a whim. She had always heard that Hogwarts was very magical, but hers had not been so... "This school truly is extraordinary," she mused. "It is an honor to work here, it will open so many opportunities for me." That was one of the main reasons she wanted to work here, she wanted to break free of her responsibilities until she absolutely had to give in.
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Post by Rowan Trace on Aug 16, 2011 18:30:40 GMT -5
Now Rowan flicked a glance aside at the woman. He rarely heard anyone mention opportunities which weren't directly related to sexual acts, and his paranoid side bristled at the thought of any kind of competition. "What kinds of opportunities are you hoping for?" Was she looking for a permanent position? Head of House? He wanted to know how much of a threat she was, or perhaps who he could send her to talk to besides himself. He'd done a good job the last time he'd referred someone.
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Post by Shianni Veridian Trace on Aug 16, 2011 20:38:09 GMT -5
"I want to prove that a society woman does not have to marry to have worth," Shianni said. "I want to make a name for myself among the academics, and I want to stay here for as long as possible. If I can move up in the positions, such as head of house, it would be perfect." She doubted she could get to the very top, as it was simply not possible for her to shirk her duties forever, but she could try.
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Post by Rowan Trace on Aug 16, 2011 20:59:53 GMT -5
Slytherin, Rowan thought. Hopefully he was right, and so she'd be competing with Chase Firebrand for that position, and not him. Not that he felt incapable of defending the position he wanted, but things had been going well so far, and he'd grown accustomed to the slow-and-steady pace he'd set.
"I'll warn you, there aren't a lot of academics here anymore." He went over some of the school's problems for her, trying to provide a realistic view of the situation. "We have some very talented professors," he finished, "but little to work with in the student population."
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Post by Shianni Veridian Trace on Aug 16, 2011 21:09:46 GMT -5
"It can be no worse than my own school," Shianni said dismissively. "We were hidden away on a mountain top with no connection to the outside world to speak of. The students found...interesting ways of amusing themselves." Her eyes darkened slightly before she hid the expression away again. Though she spoke of her fellow students as though she was no part of it, she had been, whether she wanted to be or not.
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Post by Rowan Trace on Aug 16, 2011 21:18:36 GMT -5
Rowan couldn't imagine a student body in worse condition than he'd just described, but Professor Veridian was the first person he'd discussed any of this with who hadn't seemed mortified and disbelieving. "Even with the Muggle drug problem and the constant truancy?" he clarified. True, he had glossed over specifics, but he had told her quite a bit.
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Post by Shianni Veridian Trace on Aug 16, 2011 21:24:11 GMT -5
"We did not particularly have a Muggle drug problem, but certain potions were in every corner, girls were cornered in the towers, first years locked away in haunted ruins." Eventually, everyone knew one another, and the first years were a prime target for some of their pranks. "The professors were wonderful, but they were older and blind to many of the things that happened." Most of the time she enjoyed her school, but that was once she had learned to take care of herself.
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Post by Rowan Trace on Aug 16, 2011 21:35:18 GMT -5
"Aside from the age of the professors, you should feel right at home," Rowan said dryly. "Our students tend toward Muggle methods of torment and destruction, so their spellwork is generally a mess, but most of the staff are just as bad. If you ever read newspapers, there are back issues of the Daily Prophet in the library. Mostly overdramatic fluff, but reading a column or two will give you an idea how brainless these hallowed halls of erudition have become."
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Post by Shianni Veridian Trace on Aug 16, 2011 21:49:17 GMT -5
"Well, it seems that I am just what this school needs," Shianni said. "I had to break up a fight already on the train, between three Slytherins. Six detentions before term even started." She shook her head. Maybe it had been too much to hope that Hogwarts would be a better environment. Perhaps she should overlook those detentions, though it seemed as though the one girl would be told nothing.
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Post by Rowan Trace on Aug 16, 2011 21:56:51 GMT -5
"If any of them actually attend detention I'll be surprised," Rowan said. "Not to discourage you—I think we need to be tougher and more attentive than in the past—but few are up to the challenge. I had talked to another professor about taking a stand for the students, but unfortunately he was more concerned with his social life than actually accomplishing anything." And he'd seemed to be doing just fine at lunch that day.
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Post by Shianni Veridian Trace on Aug 16, 2011 22:10:32 GMT -5
"Social life is...overrated," Shianni said, glancing down at the large ring for a moment. "I am not sure you know what I mean, I do not recognize your surname, but I am very glad to be away from the balls and having to act like a little princess for once." She could tolerate them, and from time to time they were fun, but she would much rather put her time into other interests.
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Post by Rowan Trace on Aug 16, 2011 22:21:46 GMT -5
"Ah," Rowan said. "No, thank God my father wasn't interested in any of that. I'm not sure of the story, but it's been a couple generations since there was any Trace involved. For all I know there was a name change somewhere, I've never looked into it." He didn't care about all that Purist crap and knew next to nothing about the lifestyle. His father was in the merchant class, and though he had money, he didn't care to use it on much more than earning more money. As far as Rowan was aware, the wealthy elite were not to be envied.
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