Closed A Quick Chat

[Claudia Holland]

After watching the ceremony and giving her daughter many hugs and kisses, Claudia had one thing she wanted to do before she forgot. With the maternity leave, a lot of things she had been hoping to do had been pushed to the side. One of them had been to send an owl to the headmistress of Hogwarts. But now that she was here, maybe she could have a quick talk to Professor Alicastell to see if she was willing to have a meeting with her at some point in the near future. Not only that, but it only felt right to thank her for the care she and her teachers had given her daughters. Claudia didn't know Katherine Alicastell personally, but from what she had seen and heard, she respected the woman greatly. When she saw Professor Alicastell was currently not engaged in conversation, Claudia stepped over to her with a friendly smile. "Professor, do you have a moment to talk?" She asked her.

 

[Katherine Alicastell]

This year's graduation would certainly be a memorable one among all others, but the unexpected betrayal by the head boy was something Katherine was already eager to move past. It wouldn't do well to dwell on such negativity, particularly for a day that was meant to be celebrated and looked on in a positive light. The Headmistress did briefly wonder if she should pull Tapsell aside and speak with him privately about his attitude toward the school, and in particular his lack of attempts to address any of his concerns with her over seven years of learning, but now didn't seem to be the time nor place. Instead, the woman mingled briefly with groups in attendance, staff and former students, parents and current students, pleased to hear about where everyone was currently at, or where they planned for their life to head. Between these stops, Katherine was unsurprised to catch sight of the Minister of Magic heading toward her, though whether she was approaching to speak to her as a parent, or in an official capacity was the first question on the woman's mind. Either way, her appearance reminded Katherine of Rose's words during the ceremony, ones she had needed to hear to reaffirm that she was indeed doing her best for the school. "Minister, of course. I do hope the ceremony wasn't too distressing. To what do I owe the pleasure?"​

 

[Claudia Holland]

Claudia smiled at Katherine's words and shook her head. "Don't worry, I'm not that easily distressed." She said, joking lightly. The boy's words had been vaguely unsettling, but Claudia had practice by now in not letting things affect her. And the bitter words of a seventeen year old boy weren't all that impressive to Claudia. "Aside from that small incident, the ceremony was lovely." She said, dismissing the speech as a minor inconvenience. "I'm both hoping to briefly talk to you as a parent and as the Minister. I hope that is alright?" If Katherine wasn't in the mood for any official business today, Claudia would understand that. "If not, I would be happy to send an owl later tonight for you to respond to when it's better suited. But before anything else, I would like to thank you for the great care the school has provided my children. From everything I've heard and seen, Hogwarts has done an excellent job." She smiled as she glanced over at her oldest daughter, laughing with some of her friends. "Rose is sad to leave, she has considered the school a second home." She said, returning her gaze to Katherine. "And that is something I'm grateful for."

 

[Katherine Alicastell]

Katherine smiled politely, grateful that this hiccup wasn't one to set the standard for all of Hogwarts and its graduation ceremonies. There had never been any incident such as this in the past, at least not during her time as Headmistress, and it was just typical that something would happen in the Minister's presence, of all times. "As both a parent and the Minister? Why certainly, I'm all ears." The woman responded, raising a hand in silent gesture toward her deputy nearby to let him know she was presently occupied. "I'm pleased to hear that. We do our best to make the school feel as much a home-away-from-home as we can, I simply wish every student felt the same way. We all know what it was like to have to leave the familiarity of family and home life in exchange for a castle and learning." It wasn't easy for every young person to find the lives they knew completely changed, to go from a home and loving family to a shared dormitory and set routine. "I like to believe Hogwarts is as much about growth as it is education, and it's been wonderful to see young women like Rose blossom, so thank you. From all I've heard from the staff, your children have been a pleasure to teach."​

 

[Claudia Holland]

Claudia was glad the Headmistress seemed happy to talk to her, not put off by Ministry talk. She smiled as Katherine said they did their best to make the school feel like a home, and nods when she said they knew what it was like. "I miss Hogwarts sometimes, even now. Every year when my daughters go I'm a little bit jealous." She admitted with a small laugh. She felt proud to hear her describe Rose in a positive light, and was happy to hear the comment about her children. She knew Diana could sometimes cause trouble, but was glad to hear she apparently wasn't making too much of a reputation for herself. Or if she was, at least it wasn't bad enough for the Headmistress to feel like she had to include that in her statement. "I'm glad to hear it." She said with a smile.

"I don't mean to keep you long, as I know I can't be the only parent wanting to speak to you today, but I was wondering if we could make an appointment for a later meeting." She said, going over to her next point. "As you heard at the debate, I have a lot of ideals about education. I would never want to force anything on Hogwarts," this point was important to her, "but I would like to talk about both our views and see if there is any overlap, anything we would both like to do in which we could work together." She said. "Even if we end up disagreeing on every point, I think it's good for us to communicate. I can only see it being helpful for both the Ministry and Hogwarts." She finished.