Fifth Years: Lesson 3

This was one long lesson ahead, but Professor Killian Borisyuk had his notes ready, in case he missed anything. He sat behind his desk to wait for the fifth years to come in and get settled. The part-giant tapped his arm that was covered in robes as the last of the students entered. He gestured toward the door to close it. He didn't smile - which was the norm. It seemed to be saved for his girlfriend, only. Killian leaned back in his chair, crossing one of his legs over the other as he greets with his low voice, "Today, you will be learning about the other two founders: Rowena Ravenclaw and Salazar Slytherin." The class would be a little longer since Slytherin had a lot of heinous acts and Ravenclaw had very little information about her.

"So, Ravenclaw would be the one that valued intelligence above them all. she even quoted 'We will teach those whose intelligence is surest.' So, that and creativity were qualities that she was said to have, and thus what the hat looks into for sorting those into her house. There is not much known about her unfortunately, so I'll just give out the basics for this founder. It is under speculation that she grew up in 'glen', which likely means in Scotland. Others believe that she grew up where the Loch Ness Monster resides." Killian did not know whether or not it was a fact or a speculation since he did not verify it himself, and it was all up to debate since it was not written down anywhere. "The colors are blue and bronze, and the house symbol is an eagle, which is said to represent those of high academia. Why an eagle over a raven because the name is 'Ravenclaw' is beyond me, as ravens are also birds of high intelligence. Anyway, Ravenclaw is said to have died of a broken heart. She had a daughter named Helena Ravenclaw, who is allegedly the Ghost of Ravenclaw in Hogwarts Scotland. So, if you have a pen pal from that school, you can have them ask the ghost more questions. Our Ravenclaw House ghost is Professor Gladys Wright. She will tutor students, especially those that need help with Arithmancy. And that finishes up Ravenclaw so we are moving over to the next founder: Slytherin."

The part-giant did not like this founder, and he did well to hide it. "Salazar founded the Slytherin house, of course. Slytherin himself can be seen as honorable, or as a devil, depending on which side of the spectrum you are on. There are a lot of mixed feelings about Slytherin that transcend to the house itself just because of the origin. However, considering his morals and beliefs, you will come to understand why." Killian didn't know anything about Salazar Slytherin until he even came to this school, but after reading about him, let's just say his opinion was pretty low of the man. "By now, you all should know that just because Slytherin himself might have done some evil things, doesn't mean that all students in his house are. While my experience is rather limited with people from Hogwarts, you all should know your peers. The colors of his house are green and silver, and the mascot is a serpent." Killian stretched his arms up and crossed them behind his head.

It was just so hard not to swear about it, but he was holding his tongue. "Salazar Slytherin grew up in the fen. Majority of the sources will agree to that, so it must be true. It is also the name generally used for the Eastern Portion of England. It was said that he was a Parselmouth and a Legilimens. Furthermore, Slytherin wanted to create a school with the other three founders, a school where magical children could learn magic and hone their skills. However, as wonderful as it sounds, there were some conflicts. Two founders butted heads." It would take some time for him to understand the rivalry between the houses. "Slytherin and Gryffindor could not agree. This conflict broke up the fantastic four, and the reason for their fight would be because Slytherin believed that only children with pure-blood should be allowed to attend. Gryffindor disagreed." That would mean people like him would not be allowed to attend Hogwarts because he was part-giant and not pure-blood. "The conflict ultimately drove Slytherin off. But he did not leave without a parting gift. It was a legend until Harry Potter confirmed it true. Slytherin left behind a basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets - a secret that Slytherin created. The basilisk had a mission to kill." Killian paused for a moment, as he looked over the students, seeing what they thought of this mess.

"The basilisk almost succeeded, twice. Tom Riddle, a descendent of Salazar Slytherin himself, was able to open the chamber and command the beast. I'm sure you know him as Lord Voldemort by now. Anyway, the basilisk was let loose two times before it was struck down. Once in the early twentieth century and then again in the 1990s. The basilisk killed one student the first time, and she is a ghost there currently. Tom got away with, framing a part-giant student. Tom was at it again in the 1990s, using a student to set the basilisk loose but luckily, no one died. Infamous Harry Potter killed the basilisk inside the chamber when he was a second year. There's more information in the library over it if you want to go research for yourself. The house ghost in Scotland was the Bloody Baron, but ours is known as the Dark Rider. He does not give out his name for whatever reason, but judging from his clothes, he has been here for a very, very long time. If you want to know the very history of New Zealand, you might have some luck there." Seeing as that would dive off the subject of Slytherin, but Killian was pretty much done for the day. He unfolded his arms from behind his head. "And that concludes the lesson." He waved his wand toward the chalk board to write up the assignment. "Homework is on the board. Class dismissed."
Assignment: RP the lesson.
Extra credit: If you are in Ravenclaw/Slytherin, then write a small essay if you think the hat made the right choice. If you are not, then you can write about either a person you know, or if you think you should have been in Ravenclaw/Slytherin and why. Worth 5 EC points.
 
Teddy sat in history of magic listening to Professor Borisyuk lecture on Slytherin and Ravenclaw. Just like last week, Teddy already knew some of the information, but he was less familiar with the founders backgrounds for the other houses. He listened to the story about the basilisk and thought it was crazy all that happened in a school of all places. He finished up his notes then left the classroom when they were dismissed.
 
After the last history class, Callie could admit that she hadn’t been massively looking forward to this one. She had learnt about her house and she wasn’t sure she needed to know that much about the other houses. She liked to know because it fun to know such things, but she didn’t think it that vital. She walked into the room and took out her books and notes. She began writing down what he said, finding ravenclaw far more interesting than Slytherin, especially given all that slytherin didn’t and would not have liked about her. Her mind briefly went to Dante. Wondering if this played into why his family hadn’t wanted them to date. Eventually the lesson was wrapped up and Callie packed up her things and headed out of the room.
 
Enoch was sure learning about the founder, and specifically his founder wasn’t going to go well for him. He knew that Slytherin was typically seen as the bad house and that the founder would likely be the sort that would solidify why that was. He took his spot in the history classroom and took his notes and books out. He placed them down in front of him as the professor got started, of course going first over Ravenclaw, and then moved on to slytherin. Not unlike the previous week there was more on the latter than the former. It seemed that Salazar had just done more. The teen took some notes form what was being said, though he didn’t really need to write a whole lot, the history was extensively covered in books. The lesson then moved on, and was eventually rounded off. The professor gave them the homework - which this time he was in theory supposed to complete and then wrapped up the lesson and dismissed them.
 
Elodie was halfway there- just a few more lessons between her and time at home. She was running a little late that morning (she'd been caught up reading a book) so she walked to class without her tie and with her hair twisted into a quick messy bun. She slid into the nearest available seat, offering a sheepish smile as the class began almost immediately after.

She did her best to keep notes- talking about the founders was really interesting to her. She wondered what kind of lives they'd lived, what they'd think of their legacy now. She thought the house ghosts were pretty cool, and realized in that moment she couldn't recall ever seeing her own house ghost. Maybe she could try to find him? She scribbled a quick note about it, and decided to start her search as soon as they were dismissed.
 

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