HM Meeting Y36/S1

[Nell Night]

To say Nell was nervous would be an understatement. Running the paper was the biggest responsibility she had ever held in her life, and she didn't know how well she was going to be able to handle it. Her appalling grades last year were plenty of evidence that balance was not her strong suit. Nell had discovered she loved journalism though, loved getting to the bottom of things, and she wanted to prove herself, show the world the reporter she knew she could be. And that meant hard work, work Nell was determined to put in.

With so many new members to the club this year Nell wanted to start the year off with a simple meeting to touch base and get to know one another as a team. So rather than anything elaborate she had simply set the club's room up with a big table and notebooks for a simple get-to-know-you activity. After putting the finishing touches on the setup she sat down and started going through her notes, trying to make sure she was totally prepared for the meeting to come. She had to be perfect.

 

[Sebastian Grimm]

Seb hadn't exactly planned on signing up for the newspaper, but after having signed Nikola up for every other activity, he supposed it only fair that he stuck to Nikola having signed him up to Hogwarts Monthly. He wasn't entirely sure what to expect, and he didn't think he was actually any good at writing, so he hoped that the group would actually have a place for him and not kick him out immediately.
Seb entered the room for the meeting, having tucked his shirt in and made sure his collar was properly folded, so he at least looked presentable. He was the first one there, so he awkwardly made his way to the side of the room, giving the lady an awkward grin.

 

[Thalia Pourroulis]

Thalia was admittedly a little nervous for her first meeting at the school paper. She had often thought that the students who worked for the paper were much smarter and better than her, and the stories she had written in the past seemed next to nothing compared to the articles written. But she had decided to get more involved in the school and the clubs offered, and she loved writing. Couldn’t do without it. She entered the room only to discover she was the second one there besides the editor. Thalia sent her a small smile and waited for the meeting to start. ​

 

[Luxen Silverback II]

Luxen entered the room for Hogwarts Monthly and took a seat. He wasn't really interested in attending meetings but figured it would be good to know what assignments he would be given. Luxen was not interested in puff pieces about the school but knew that with time and practice he would end up with a voice within the paper. The article he'd written the year before had been rejected simply because he wasn't part of the paper and now he would be able to correct it. "I trust this meeting will be useful?" Luxen said out loud even though the room barely had any of the members present. His words were directed at the editor @Nell Wright rather than the others.

 

[Sydney Townsend]

Each year the school paper changed hands, Sydney was alway interested to find out if their new editor would be up to snuff. Sophie had been a hard act to follow, and while Sydney hadn't really found Joshua to be a compelling leader on his own, having Leda on hand had helped some. Nell would be an interesting addition. She didn't shy away from asking questions at least, even if Sydney personally thought she talked too much. Arriving for their first club meeting, Sydney was a little surprised at the number of new members this year, wondering if Nell was aiming for quantity over quality. Though it wasn't exactly like the paper wouldn't need hands for printing, even if she doubted all the newbies would have enough writing chops yet.

Sydney scoffed when one the new faces flounced in, clearly acting as if he had better things to be doing. "Useful for people who know what they're doing maybe," She said snidely, giving him a once over. "If you're bored already you can leave," She added. While Sydney had originally joined HM for lack of a better writing outlet, she had come to appreciate the time investment that came from working on the paper, she didn't have time for some upstart lower year student thinking his time was more precious than hers. @Luxen Silverback II

 

[Mary Lou Layton]

Mary Lou didn't know how she felt, but she was out of her element and that was generally enough to put her on edge. @Wendall Layton had offered to meet Mary Lou in the common room and walk her to the HM meeting and she was more grateful for that than she knew how to put into words and so as she walked beside him, with her arm, of course, tucked into his, she tried not to dread the knowledge that Luxen Silverback was a part of the paper. She'd seen his name on the sign up sheet before, and though she couldn't imagine what on Earth he'd want with the paper, she couldn't help but to be very scared about the types of things he might try and get passed. She didn't know anyone on the paper, except for Wendall, and she thought she might have seen Thalia's name on there too, but she didn't know her very well either. This meant that she didn't have a lot in the way of armour and so anything Luxen might have sent her way would have free reign to upset her. She wouldn't couldn't talk about what had happened on the train and with the feast, it all just confirmed her suspicions that the school disliked her and she was on her own. Of course she appreciated Wendall, and she appreciated Thalia too, her closest friends in this group as she'd at least know that they would be around if she needed any moral support, which, walking into the room and seeing Luxen, made her hitch her breath. She tried not to let it be obvious though and smiled lightly at Wendall to cover for her moment. She was about to take her seat when she heard Luxen, unsurprised at his ability to immediately bring down a room, though she refrained from saying anything, as she knew he would only try to make everything her fault again. She already knew everything was her fault, she didn't need to be told.​

 

[Wendall Layton]

Wendall was pretty excited when he'd found out that Mary-Lou was joining the Hogwarts Monthly, although less so when he'd heard about Luxen. Leda had told him (well, he may have overheard Leda telling Mervyn) about what happened when the Slytherin had tried to submit an article, and there were parts in it that he promised himself he would never quote to anyone else. The paper was meant to be a voice for the school, but what would it mean to have a controversial voice? He supposed it was the same with films, although he had his doubts about why Luxen was doing it. He'd grinned wildly when Mary Lou joined him, and after offering to show her to the meeting room, he'd been doing his best to try and prepare her for what to expect. He only had one extra year of experience himself, but it had been fun. Entering the room he waved at a few people he already recognised, although it was debatable whether they really knew who he was, he'd not been particularly chatty to them last year. He offered Mary Lou the seat beside him before sitting to see how the meeting would plan out. He glanced at Luxen as he asked one of the first questions, confused why he thought this meeting was going to be anything but positive. Maybe he was just a bit of a pessimist.​

 

[Cyzarine Haden]

Cyzarine was so excited for this meeting, it was enjoyable to be able to spend the at the monthly, it was something that she had been a part of things since very on in her schooling, so she was enjoying as it developed, she was always looking forward to what she might write in any article, and she was always trying to keep things fresh. She walked into the Monthly and spotted that there were a few younger members, people she hadn't really seen before. But there was Nell, "Hey Nell!" she greeted the girl warmly, knowing of all the people to take over from who had held it last, she was the right person for it, the right person to take over, "Congratulations! I can't wait to get started," she said as she found herself a spot to sit in. ​

 

[Poppy Perkins]

Poppy had grown to really enjoy her time working on the paper. She had stuck to doing horoscopes most of the time and it was really fun. It felt like a practical way to express herself as she interpreted the stars. She wasn't always sure she was doing it correctly, but she was always trying her best. One day she would write something more exciting but she hadn’t figured out what that was quite yet so for now she would stick with what was fun. She waved and smiled at Nell as she entered the club room and took a seat. She took out her notebook to take down any announcements or information she needed to know.

 

[Nikko Blackwood]

Nikko still felt a little uncomfortable on the newspaper. He had only written one thing last year and wasn't always sure what he was doing. But it was still the most normal club at Hogwarts. He had no desire to fight in the dueling club, or socialize, or deal with plants. Now that quidditch was also out of the picture for now it was all he really had this year. Hopefully he would find inspiration somewhere and get to write story.

 

[Olivia Lightwood]

Olivia arrived at the Hogwarts Monthly room, it was an interesting room, not very different from a typical journalism school club room, there were some issues hanging in the walls, some a bit yellow where the passage of time was more noticeable.
The Hufflepuff girl was nervous to say the least, she had only talked to Nell, the head of the club, and she only knew her because she was there when Olivia signed up, besides that Olivia didn't socialise much and the few people she had met she never had the luck to meet someone that would be writing with her.
A lot of thoughts crossed the young girl's mind, What if they don't like what I write? What if I'm not good enough? What if I'm so bad that they will lick me out of the club?, her mind kept thinking on how she would ruin this opportunity, which would eventually happen, not because she was bad but because those thoughts were self destructive and she always ended up ruining things because of overthinking.
Olivia felt shy in the presence of so many new faces who kept talking to each other like they known each other for years now, some people looked way older than her, she thought about coming up to some random people and started mingling but she chose to sit down in one of the chairs that were around a table. She thought it was interesting that there were a lot of notebooks on the table and she wondered what was the purpose of those.

 

[Professor Emmaline Hopkins]

Emmaline had gotten word that she would have her first meeting of Hogwarts Monthy. The young girl had signed up for this club, knowing it would look good on her permanent record, it also seemed like the best options of all the clubs. She had to pick one and of course, by nature, Emmaline had picked one that required work. She always seemed to have to apply herself. Half her first semester here was spent writing, why not add a little more to the young Gryffindor's courseload.

Emmaline wondered into the Hogwarts Monthly meeting room. She noticed quite a few students had already arrived. Hopefully I'm not late Emmaline thought to herself as she smiled at the individuals in the room before taking a spot in the crowd. She wondered what she would be able to write about. She knew she what she would like to do, but she did not know exactly what the options were. Emmaline knew she should have read some previous issues to get a feel for the paper, but honestly, and completely out of character for this young girl, she had forgotten about the club. She had just been so busy with classes and her friends. It had slipped her mind.

 

[Nikola Raven]

Of all the activities he had been signed up for, this was the only one that he had actually personally signed his name to, so he was rather excited about it. He didn't feel like he had got one over on Seb by forcing him to sign up, however, seeing as his Hufflepuff friend seemed eager to get going with things. He had been distracted in the library when he remembered he had to attend the meeting today, so he ended up rushing in and breathing heavily as he tried to catch his breath and spotted his friend. One thing was clear about Sebastian, he always seemed to be on time. He smiled tiredly at the Hufflepuff and stood beside him.​

 

[Nell Night]

Nell tried to crush the butterflies fluttering in her stomach as the new club members began to arrive, trying to look confident as she greeted the first couple with a smile and a 'hey'. She was surprised when the third person to join them flounced into the room with a rather rude question. Nell hadn't been prepared for anyone to be rude over a newspaper meeting of all things, and she was relieved when Sydney was quicker to respond than she was, though the Slytherin was also a bit snippier than Nell would have been. She gave Syd a quick grateful look nevertheless before responding to the boy. "This is our first meeting for the year, the focus is going to be on getting to know each other and working as a team." She said firmly, stressing the last word. Nell couldn't find any patience in herself for people who were interested in being disruptive, and she wondered for the first time whether she would actually have to kick someone out of the club. Hopefully it wouldn't come to that, but if the boy's attitude made him impossible to work with...

She was relieved when more people joined the room and she was able to focus on them, beaming at Cyzarine's greeting. "Thank you so much! Congratulations yourself, miss prefect!" Nell said brightly, grinning gratefully at the pretty Gryffindor. She always felt a little intimidated to talk to Cyzarine, like she wasn't actually cool enough to qualify for the conversation. A silly feeling, as Cyzarine always seemed nothing but nice. It felt particularly cool to be congratulated by her and Nell enjoyed the feeling for a moment before turning her focus to the table, which had filled up with plenty of members of the paper by now.

"Okay, hey everyone! Let's get started!" Nell said cheerfully, clapping her hands together. "We've got a lot of new people in the room this year, so I'll introduce myself quickly. I'm Nell Wright, and this is my first year as Editor of Hogwarts Monthly. I've been on the paper for four years already, and I'm really excited to be working on this year's issues with all of you. If you have any questions at all about anything you need to do, don't hesitate to ask!" She grinned, hoping her nerves didn't show in the slight waver of her voice. "Now, rather than just going around a circle, I thought it'd be fun to play a little game to get to know each other a little better, and get some practice flexing our journalistic muscles. So, we're going to start things off today with a fun getting to know you exercise. You've all got quills and notebooks on the table, and what I'd like you to do is try to come up with a news headline that could be written about you! I've written a couple about myself to give you ideas, they can be as serious or silly as you like, just have fun with it." She smiled, holding up her notebook to show the group the silly headlines she had thought up at an ungodly hour of the morning while she had been too stressed out to sleep. "Once you're done, hold up your headline so everyone can see!"

Local Girl Breaks World Record For Least Homework Completed In 12 Hour Study Marathon

Ravenclaw Tragically Suffocates After Being Crushed By Sticker Collection

Hogwarts Student Tries To Do It All, Winds Up Doing Nothing At All​

 

[Wendall Layton]

Wendall was sure there were a lot more people this year then last, and it was quite exciting because that meant that there would be more variety, too. The Hufflepuff listened to Nell as she explained the point to the meeting, looking around the room to see if everyone was paying attention. It sounded pretty fun to Wendall, who instantly knew what headlines would have worked for him personally. After writing them down, he showed them to Mary Lou beside him, giggling to himself, before holding them up for the rest of the group to see. Wendall was well aware of the issues he managed to get into, and he was more than happy to make a joke out of it at his own expense.

Boy, 11, found wedged between the Hogwarts Station and Platform 9 3/4

Culprit is discovered after Hufflepuff is hit in the head with a rogue textbook. The investigation continues.

Food fight ensued during Start of Year Feast, but not everyone makes it out unscathed, as third year gets more than familiar with the floor.

 

[Professor Emmaline Hopkins]

Emmaline was never really comfortable with last minute assignments. She liked to come completely prepared for any option that could occur. She had entered this room with five ice breaker statements she could use or sources for three of her favourite newspapers. She had not intended the goal to be determining what a news article for herself would be. Taking out her quill, she tapped the edge against the paper as she thought. Emmaline rarely thought about herself. Her future, all the time. Her sister, almost constantly, her mother, often, but herself, almost never.

The young Gryffindor considered her headlines, trying to keep them upbeat despite the amount of stress she was under at the moment. Thinking about fun headlines, she personally would love to read, as well as including personal facts about herself, staying to the edge of anything too dangerous, jumping into her own personal world, Emmaline began to jot down her headlines.

Young Gryffindor Spends Most Time In Library in a Week!
When Will Perfect Be Enough: Girl Strives for Perfect Scores In Each Class!
Broke Gryffindor Girl Practices Recycling to Stay Ahead of the Fashion Curve

Emmaline knew she had gotten a little too deep with the headlines. She could not help herself. Sometimes the words simply came out, by mouth or by pen. She knew the headlines fit her personally, she just hoped it was not too much of a look into herself, a self she was not ready to really psychologically devolve in just yet.

 

[Olivia Lightwood]

Olivia was already sitting at the table when everyone else come joined her, she didn't really knew that there was going to be an activity but she guessed the notebooks should have hinted her to that.
Olivia her Nell talkimg about how they should write headlines that could be aboit them and the Hufflepuff girl had absolutely no idea how she was going to do that, it all seemed rather new to her and she had never done something like that. She considered her words carefully, mostly because she didn't want to come out too strong, and thought about what qualities or flaws defined her and got writing.

She can do it all!
From fixing cars to writing on the school paper this girl doesn't catch a break.
Hope becomes her super power: After her brother took part on tragic car accident this girl doesn't give up on hope.
Decisions, decisions, most indecisive person on the planet is now seeing herself fully in charge of her choices
​

​

 

[Samantha Jacobs]

Samantha had arrived at the Hogwarts Monthly meeting a little late, and that wasn't a good impression to make. She had enjoyed writing for the paper over the years, showing her ideas and creativity. Samantha quietly crept into the room, noticing that the meeting had already begun, and quickly, but quietly takes a seat next to Sydney. They had a new person running the paper this year, and she didn't mind it. They then had to do a small activity.

A Hufflepuff Girl East 100 Chocolate
Frogs In Just Under Two Minutes!

A Fourth Year Girl Found Hidden
Behind The Kitchen Cabinets
Eating Chocolate Cupcakes!

A Fourteen-Year-Old Girl With A Fear
Of Bees, Being Chased By A Group Of Them!​