All I Ever Wanted Was the World

[Celia Vuong]

After three years at Hogwarts, Celia felt like she'd seen more than enough to have an informed opinion on the school's curriculum. And that opinion was the curriculum sucked. The material was insultingly basic, the lessons incredibly slow-paced, and the assignments completely pointless. Whoever had designed the curriculum had to have been practically braindead, which coincidentally was also how Celia felt at the end of every mind-numbingly boring lesson.

The one solace to her situation was that Professor Corrins had offered extra tutoring. They had started with advanced charms, but over the years, Professor Corrins had accumulated a small collection of textbooks in a variety of subjects for Celia, who had taken to doing a lot of her studying in the professor's office. It was the one space in the castle where she could freely peruse texts on muggle and magical subjects alike without worrying about questioning looks from her classmates. Plus, Professor Corrins always seemed willing to answer a question or two, and for that, Celia was incredibly grateful.

Today they were working on the Unbreakable Charm, a spell that wasn't officially included in the fourth year curriculum despite its obvious utility. Celia tapped the dinner plate in her hands with her wand before throwing it to the ground. It hit the stone floor with a loud clatter but did not break. She summoned the plate back into her hands and turned it over, looking for any cracks or chips. "I think I've finally got it!" Celia announced, smiling with obvious pride. She held the flawless plate out for Professor Corrins to inspect.

 

[Professor Mallory Grayveson]

Mallory was always happy to have students stop by. Celia had become a regular in her office. Mallory had collected texts for her, and a collection of snacks she knew the girl enjoyed. Mallory had been going over her lessons, trying to think of new ways to go over them, when Celia spoke up.

Mallory looked up from her papers and smiled. "That's marvelous!" She congratulated the girl. "You're making wonderful progress, darling." Mallory waved her hand, sliding out a chair. "Here, sit, rest. Tea?" Mallory asked, summoning over the tea anyway.

 

[Celia Vuong]

Celia beamed at the compliment. Three years ago, she might have found Professor Corrins' excessive praise annoying or even condescending. But there was no doubt that the woman's inexhaustible kindness had grown on her. She set the plate down, took a seat and nodded. "Yes, please." She trusted that Professor Corrins already knew her preferred types of tea.

Celia thanked the professor as she accepted the cup. She took a sip, eyeing the papers on the woman's desk. "What are you working on?" she asked curiously. It was a little too early in the year for grading, and besides, it was rare to have written assignments in Charms. Celia knew she was being a little nosy, but Professor Corrins had never seemed to mind before.

 

[Professor Mallory Grayveson]

Mallory got up and set to work, returning quickly to Celia and setting the tea in front of her. "I'm trying to put together a new lesson plan," She told Celia. "But it's proving to be... difficult." Mallory sat down, cradling her own tea. "I was given the last Professors syllabus when I came here. I've been attempting to rework it, but trying to get it done is... challenging. Any changes have to be approved, of course. And whereas I do have a handful of students in my classes that aren't challenged, or are bored with the lessons, there are also those that struggle with the material. And I seem to keep getting students that resent my teaching." Mallory sighed, rubbing her forehead and looking stressed. "I've gotten rude notes, and a student recently that seems to think they'd rather spend their lesson glaring at me than doing anything useful." She shook her head and sipped her tea.

 

[Celia Vuong]

A new lesson plan? That was certainly interesting though Celia had her doubts as to how much Professor Corrins could accomplish. She knew Professor Alicastell and the Ministry set the curriculum, and she assumed deviating from it was difficult. "That does sound frustrating," Celia said, giving the professor a sympathetic look once she had finished explaining all the challenges she was facing. Privately, though, she could understand why some students might take issue with Professor Corrins' teaching or demeanor; after all she used to be (and occasionally still was) one of them.

"For the students who are rude, could you take points or give them detention? Or maybe even talk to their Head of House or parents." It was admittedly kind of difficult to picture Professor Corrins disciplining someone, but maybe that was the issue. If she was feared, more students would listen to her. "And if they're not doing their work in class, they should probably get a grade that reflects that." Celia assumed the professor might find that suggestion more amenable. After all, she had given Celia an Exceeds Expectations once for practicing an advanced spell in class. "I guess there's not a lot you can do about the students who are struggling aside from extra tutoring," Celia mused, gently tapping her fingers on the side of her cup. To be honest, she didn't understand why Professor Corrins was that concerned. People failed classes all the time in the muggle world; it wasn't realistic to expect everyone to succeed. "It's kind of strange that Hogwarts doesn't have advanced or honors classes. That would solve a lot of problems."

 

[Professor Mallory Grayveson]

Mallory smiled at Celia's suggestions. "Oh, you're probably right. I just don't believe its fair to stifle a students opinions just because they don't like me. If we don't have room to grow, to rebel, then it would just do more harm than good." She brushed her hair behind her ear. "I do think advanced placement options would be nice, or a more intensive tutoring program." She sighed. "Unfortunately I don't think we have the funding, or the staffing, for things like that." Mallory tapped her notebook. "So for now I think the best I can do is rework my classes a bit."