Open Hogwarts Monthly S1 Meeting

[Sophie Wilson]

Sophie had enjoyed working on the paper since she joined in her first year, but she had never expected to be in charge of it. Now that Lennon had asked her to take over, this was the reality, and she knew she had to try her best to do it well. Normally, Sophie wouldn't really admit to caring about anything that much, but the paper was an exception. It had been something she loved doing for years, and she wished to make Lennon proud and show the rest of the club he had made the right choice in picking her. She was grateful for Noemie's assistance, even if she personally might not have picked the girl to help her out. She was one of Amber's friends, and only a few years ago that would have been enough to make Sophie dislike her. But as the girl had helped her set things up for the meeting, she realized she was a big asset.

The team had grown a lot over the years, but a few members had left now too. At the club fair, only one new student had shown interest, but Sophie hoped it would grow more in the coming years. She was glad there weren't too many new faces, because she knew she could trust the people she already knew to do their best. Sophie looked around the room to see if everything was ready. She had put up a few decorations, and there were a few snacks and drinks. Today's meeting wasn't really anything official. Of course she would be there to answer any questions anyone would have, but the actual planning of the first issue would come later. She glanced at Noemie and hesitated before smiling a little. "Thanks for helping out." She hoped other people would arrive soon, and also hoped none of them would be annoyed about her getting the editor position. She didn't feel like fighting for it, but she would if she had to.

 

[Caro Taylor]

Caro didn't look forward to a lot of things at school, but working on the Hogwarts Monthly was right at the top of the very short list. She enjoyed having an outlet for her photography, and something to work towards, where everyone at the school had to see how hard she worked, how great she was. It wasn't as show-offy as Lizzie's way of making a name for herself, but she had no doubt that everyone in the school had seen her handiwork in some way or another. She had been let down, though also not surprised, when Sophie was chosen as editor. Head Photographer was an excellent title, and Caro certainly wouldn't complain, but it was a little dismaying to see her best friend liked more than her yet again.

Caro wasn't going to let it get her down, though. She was better than that. She was happy for Sophie, end of story. So it was with a wide smile that she greeted her friend for the first meeting of the year, hurrying over to give Sophie a quick hug. "Congratulations!" She said excitedly. "Your first meeting, this is so cool!" She grinned, hoping the note of bitterness didn't come across as she took a seat next to Sophie. "I bet you're gonna do amazing."

 

[Arvel Ayers]

Arvel hated meetings. He hated any activity that involved spending time with other people, and even more if he had to talk to them. But the Hogwarts Monthly meetings were even worse, because it was one of the few places in the castle Arvel couldn't avoid seeing Nixon. Just catching a glimpse of him in the corridor made Arvel's heart shatter all over again, so that he spent more time piecing it together than he did feeling whole. He'd thought about approaching the boy, striking up a conversation, asking him to the next dance, but he didn't think he could bear to inflict that kind of unnecessary pain on himself. Nixon didn't like him. If he did, he would have at least acknowledged his existence, glanced his way every now and then, maybe smiled. Arvel might as well have been invisible. Dragging his feet, he headed to the meeting place and sat down in a chair, drawing his knees up to hug them. He wished Analei had joined - maybe then the meetings would have been a little more bearable - but he was glad she hadn't made herself do something she wouldn't have enjoyed just for his sake.

 

[Sophie Wilson]

Sophie felt relieved when she saw Caro join the meeting. The Slytherin was one of her best friends, and having her by her side during all this would certainly make it easier. She couldn't help smiling as the girl hurried over to her and congratulated her, even giving her a hug. "Thanks." She said softly. "I don't know if it's cool. Time will tell if everyone will hate it or not." She said with a small shrug. As Arvel arrived, Sophie gave him a small smile. "Hello, thanks for coming." She said, though she was sure he wasn't too happy to see her. She had noticed his friend hadn't signed up for the club, and had the feeling she was partly to blame for that.

 

[Nixon Mercury]

Nixon was eager to get back into reporting for the hogwarts monthly, and more so now with Sophie as the new editor in chief. He hadn't spoken to Sophie much, if at all since he first became a reporter, but that didn't stop him from being curious to see which direction she wanted to take everything in. The meeting that day would surely be a chance for him to get an idea of what she expected from everyone, and Nixon made his way to the hogwarts monthly room intending to keep to himself for the most part and simply listen. After arriving, Nixon looked around the room, feeling his shoulders tense a little when he noticed Arvel, before he immediately turned to sit down in the opposite side of the room. Arvel had been the reason Nixon avoided the hogwarts monthly table during the club fair, and not wanting to cause or be part of a potentially bad situation, it was easier to continue avoiding the other boy during the meeting. After all, Nixon was there to learn what was expected of him and focus on the work he needed to do for a club he cared about, not get unwillingly dragged into someone else's problems.​

 

[Joshua Toubia]

Following his try-outs for quidditch, Joshua had been quite surprised Flavio consider alternative chaser position for him. Joshua had tried out to get into something new. Do something he would normally hesitate in acting out, but he did it anyways. He wasn't sure if the captain felt bad for him or in desperate need of alternative players, Joshua didn't complain and thank the boy either way. Hogwarts monthly and now quidditch, who would've thought he'd be part of a students club and sports team? Not him, that's for sure. Joshua made his way up to the fifth floor with a navy journal clasp in his hand while he thought how so much has changed over the years for him. It was strange and wonderful feeling to be able to adventure out in one's comfort zone and push boundaries. Joshua made to the Hogwarts Monthly's first in meeting in which Sophie would be delegating the school's newspaper this year. "Hi Sophie, c-congrats," Joshua commend in her getting editor position. Joshua sat down and thought of some article ideas he'd be willing to write for their first paper this school year.

 

[Sophie Wilson]

Sophie felt a sense of relief as more of the staff entered the meeting, giving Nixon a wave though she didn't really know him that well. As editor, she knew she had to at least be on friendly terms with all of the members of the paper, and for her that wasn't easy. She still thought Arvel was probably mad at her for her comment at the club fair, and if Analei had told him about their history for that as well. Joshua Toubia was someone she didn't think she had ever really talked to for very long, so she was pleasantly surprised when he congratulated her. He seemed like a quiet kid, something Sophie could understand. "Thanks Joshua, I look forward to working together." She said, giving him a smile. It sounded a bit formal and strange, even to her own ears, but she did mean her words.

 

[Nell Night]

There were so many things to do at Hogwarts, and Nell was eager to do all of them, as soon as possible. She had signed up for every club available, and now that they were starting to have meetings she was looking forward to finding out more about what the clubs were like, and what kinds of things people did in them. She had been especially interested in the Hogwarts Monthly - writing a newspaper seemed like a lot of fun, and she couldn't wait to find out what kinds of things they had to do to make that happen. She slipped into the meeting, a little nervous to discover that she seemed to be the youngest person present by quite a lot. Trying not to be put off, Nell gave the older students a nervous smile as she made her way to the table, taking a seat. "Hi, I'm Nell. I'm new."

 

[Evelyn Manning]

Evelyn was still a member of Hogwarts Monthly and she heard that Amber her sister was in charge now. Evelyn was curious how she would do. Sophie seemed really different from Amber. But perhaps that was needed for a position like that. Evelyn had to admit that she missed Lennon around. He was just a fun guy and someone they never could miss, with his protest against Quidditch. The blonde got the note from the meeting and decided to stop by. Evelyn smiled as she saw others and hoped to see Noemie soon. Her friend was a part of the club too and she did a lot for it she knew. The blonde noticed Sophie and decided to stop by her. They didn't really spoke much, but she was sure that the girl knew who she was. '' Hi Sophie. Thanks for the invite. Congratulations on your position. I'm curious what you make of the Hogwarts Monthly.'' The blonde said friendly to the girl. And than looked at the people around in the room. She saw some faces she had seen before and some she never had. The blonde decided to take seat and noticed a younger Hufflepuff boy. She smiled towards him. '' Hi I'm Evelyn. Your Nixon right?'' She asked the boy with a smile. Evelyn had seen the boy before when working on Hogwarts Monthly, but never really spoken with him before.

 

[Noemie Snow]

Noemie had spent some time helping out, setting up for the meeting. Noemie was excited for this, her final year on the monthly and helping out with a new editor, she felt good about not having to take the position on herself and confident that she would be a much better fit in this role where she could do a little and allow for a little bit of a smoother transition for the new editor and also leave the monthly knowing that it was in good hands. She was always enjoying the opportunity to get to know Sophie. She had spent so much time with her elder sister and she was a good friend of Amber but it was nice to also get to know the other girl too. She smiled easily at Sophie when it appeared that everything was looking good and they were done getting things ready for this meeting. "Always!" she replied with a little smile at the other girl. She stepped away as the first people arrived, excusing herself to go wash her hands. By the time she got back a lot of others had arrived and Noemie made her way across to where Evelyn was and greeted her friend with a friendly expression before heading back over to where Sophie was, she would spend a little bit of time there, as the last few people arrived before they got started on the meeting. ​

 

[Caro Taylor]

Caro chuckled lightly at Sophie's concerns, shaking her head. "You'll be amazing. Nobody will hate it." She said reassuringly, hoping the words were true. Both for Sophie's own sake, and because it would be pretty embarrassing to be part of a paper that flopped. She wanted each issue to be better than the last. It was the only way she could really make her name known for her own merits, rather than just as Lizzie's little sister. She fell silent as more people entered the room, though Caro's head perked up a little at the sight of Nixon. She hadn't been able to stop thinking about the rose he had sent her, the only rose she had ever recieved, and Caro wondered if he had meant more by it. Trying to craft the perfect thing to say to him in her mind, Caro was beaten to the greeting by Evelyn Manning, and couldn't quite disguise a glare at the older girl. Surely Evelyn had boys her own age to slobber over, she could leave Nixon alone.

 

[Sophie Wilson]

Sophie was glad to have so much support from both Noemie and Caro, and she appreciated Joshua's comment more than he probably knew. Evelyn's wasn't as reassuring, as it sounded like she had some expectations. Sophie was less sure about her position here than she wanted to be, but didn't want to show that to the other members. When most of them had trickled in, Sophie glanced at the clock and decided to start off the meeting with a little speech she had prepared. It wasn't much, but she wanted to welcome everyone to the meeting, as well as welcome them back to the club. Sophie got to her feet and cleared her throat until she got everyone's attention. She wished she was a little bit taller, not for the first time.

"Hello, everyone." She said, resisting the urge to grab the piece of paper she had prepared her words on. She knew that would look unprofessional. "For those of you who don't know, I'm Sophie Wilson and I'm the editor for Hogwarts Monthly starting this year. I'm not going to talk for a long time, but I would like to say welcome to everyone, both new and returning. As you probably know, Lennon was the editor until last year and he asked me to take over from him. I'm going to try my best to be as good for the paper as he was, but I will need your help with that." She hesitated, then glanced at Noemie. "I'm already lucky to have Noemie at my side as Assistant Editor, as well as you all as a great team." She paused, searching for more words. "This paper is very important to me, and I think it's a fundamental part of Hogwarts life. We are in charge of spreading news to the students, to write about things that are relevant and real for them. Our paper has grown a lot over the past years, and I think that's something to be proud of." She cleared her throat. "I would like to ask you guys for any suggestions or ideas, either at this meeting or at a later point if you think of them. I'm new to this, so I'm definitely open for suggestions." She then gestured around to the snacks and decorations, sort of hoping they would distract some people from staring at her. "Besides that, just have a fun time meeting each other and hanging out, we're a club, so I would like us to spend time together and get to know each other. It will help us put together a better paper if we're aware of who we're working with." She glanced at Noemie again, wondering if she had anything to add.