Y50 Start of Year Feast

[Professor Matt Alcott-Ward]

The sorting ceremony had come to a close, and Matt smiled at the sight of the fresh new faces at all the new tables. He had always been fond of the sorting ceremony, he was glad to be a part of it now. Matt stood up, waited a few moments for everyone to settle down, then spoke.

"Good evening students and staff of Hogwarts. I know how eager we all are to start our wonderful yearly feast, but I have a few quick things to say." He smiled as he paused. " For those of you who are freshly sorted or simply didn't know, my name is Professor Matt Alcott-Ward and I'm the headmaster here at Hogwarts."

He took a sip of water before continuing. "Alongside me are your Heads of Houses, these professors are here to guide you and lead you in your respective houses. The head of house for Hufflepuff is Professor Landon Carter, for Slytherin, Professor Angel Castillo, for Ravenclaw, Professor Kahurangi Josephs, and for Gryffindor, Professor James Cade." Matt gestured to each of the professors in turn so the new students would know who was who. Then he went on.

"I already spoke about the forest before the sorting ceremony started, I hope it's not necessary to repeat myself now. Instead, I would like to make a different announcement..." He smiled, leaving a moment of anticipation. "This year is a big year for our school. It is the fiftieth anniversary. That is obviously something we have to celebrate. I can't tell you too much yet, but there will be some fun surprises coming your way. I hope you look forward to it." He said, smiling as the platters of food appeared the moment he finished speaking. "But for now, enjoy the feast!" Matt sat back down at the staff table and watched with satisfaction as some of the students started speculating about what might happen. He smiled, feeling excited about the upcoming year.

 

[Aroha Blenheim]

Aroha had her prefect's badge on, sizing up the new Gryffindors. It was really a Gryffindor year, it turned out, and Aroha cheered for each in turn, clapping loudly. It was good to give them a warm welcome, in her opinion. The headmaster said his usual spiel, except her ears tuned in to hear that there'd be surprises this year. FIfty years, huh? And Aroha just happened to be there for it. How cool. She hoped they were worthwhile surprises.

Aroha gave a stretch as the food appeared, sitting beside Fiona. Things had changed over the break. Aroha couldn't say exactly what it was - they'd just decided to hang out, and in hanging out...well, Aroha wasn't sure. It was starting to feel a little different between them but Aroha couldn't tell if it was all in her head or not. She accidentally brushed against Fiona's sleeve as she reached for the potatoes. "Oh! Uh, sorry," Aroha said with a small smile - one she rarely gave to anyone. She quickly tried to recover. "Fifty years, ay? Pretty good going for a school," Aroha commented, attempting small talk.

@Fiona Burke

 

[Natsuko Hirano]

Natsuko was beyond excited to begin her magical journey. She was all glittery eyed as she sat down, almost at the wrong table, not really knowing which was Hufflepuff. Right, a badger. She could remember that. The forbidden forest interested her for the sole fact that she didn't quite understand why they'd have a forest on the grounds if you couldn't go into it. If it was that dangerous, why not build a fence or something? She also hadn't realised the fifty years thing. That was exciting. It was all exciting and when the food appeared out of nowhere she let out a dramatic gasp. Natsuko then began to clap. "This is so cool! Food from nowhere! Or does it come from somewhere? Do you know?" Natsuko asked someone near her.

 

[Morrie Ayre]

Morrie never enjoyed going back to school the day after her birthday which was also a day full of massive disappointment, but here she was anyway. She sat quietly through the sorting ceremony, relieved that Mikael and June weren't here and that Vanity was, although she would be off at the end of the year and Morrie would be left all alone. She felt rubbish again, wondering if she needed to stay in school anyway. Were NEWTs really that important when she already had some OWLs? She sighed loudly, rubbing her arm which still ached and wishing she could skip the feast and go to bed.

 

[Ruby Beese]

Ruby enjoyed watching the first years getting sorted from the other side for the first time. It felt like ages ago that she had been sorted but she still remembered the excitement at coming to Hogwarts, even though the whole sorting experience had been intense. Ruby clapped when it was over, settling into the feast and overhearing a girl asking where the food comes from. "It's all wholesale and cooked by slaves." She said keeping her expression deadpan while helping herself to some chicken, "But they don't want us to know that last bit."

@Natsuko Hirano

 

[Natsuko Hirano]

Natsuko's face shifted very suddenly from pleasure to alarm. "Slaves?" she repeated with concern. "That's - what - how?" She was speechless, unsure whether to take this older girl at her word or not. "Surely not. Surely it's just magic and it just appears...right?" Natsuko didn't sound so certain.

@Ruby Beese

 

[Amanita Castillo]

Amanita was practically vibrating out of her skin. Slytherin! And Hinemoa had made it to Ravenclaw, as she rightly should have. Sorting couldn't have gone better and Amanita resisted the urge to kick her feet under the table with glee as the headmaster addressed them.

It was funny to see the adults of her life up at the head of the room looking so official. Dad, Mum, Whea Kahurangi, or she supposed she was Whea Josephs here, even Professor Alcott-Ward, who was pulling off the authority thing mostly, even if Amanita still thought he'd be a bit awkward at it. It made her feel extra grown up, knowing so many familiar faces compared to the other first years.

She peered around the rest of the table, gauging the reaction to the school's 50th. She knew her dad had been awfully secretive about something but he wouldn't tell her what, which was annoying, but some of the other Slytherins looked downright bored with the news, one older girl near her sighing loudly.

"Not keen on the new year?" Amanita asked, realizing suddenly that she was starving as the food appeared. She'd been too wound up on the train to eat anything. "I, for one am thrilled," she added, starting to fill her plate.

@Morrie Ayre

 

[Briony Mettlestone]

Briony had been musing most of the ceremony. She was particularly good at that, which she didn't mind, but it did mean she tended to be caught off guard by little things like the passage of time. She hadn't even really registered that sorting had ended and it was time to eat until she was lured out of watching the dark clouds of the ceiling overhead by dipping her elbow in gravy. It wouldn't be the first time. Though, she thought, glancing over at where Vanity was at the Slytherin table, soon it might be the last.

Working the kink out of her neck and holding up her sleeve so it wouldn't drip any further, Briony spotted their newly minted head girl, giving her a little smile and a wave. It was definitely for the best they'd ended up with Lucy and not Vanity. Not that Briony wasn't proud of her sister, but you only needed to be around her a short while to know why she didn't need anymore influence over the student body.

"Lucy, congrats on the new badge. Oh, do you think they'll pick our Lucy, uh, sixth year Lucy, to be head girl next year? It'll be like it's inherited by name, that'd be funny," Briony said, pausing when she dripped more gravy onto the table top. "Do you happen to know a good cleaning charm? Scourgify seems to work fine but it never quit gets the smell out," Briony said, lifting her shoulders in a shrug.

@Lucy Montague

 

[Jonathan Boot]

Jono wasn't made for big feasts like this. Even in his third year he felt like he had more in common with the wide-eyed first years filtering into the hall than with most of his classmates. Magic was still strange and exciting and the sound and sight of everything at school still awe inspiring enough that Jono wasn't really sure his brain had figured out how to process it all. How did anyone get used to it all.

Jono was doing his best impression of a normal, unbothered student as he buttered his bread roll, sighing as the knife and cold butter tore the bread to pieces. Magic was amazing and yet Jono had yet to encounter a spell that made butter easy to spread.

 

[Marley Owens-Lee]

Marley couldn't believe it... She was now in her final year of school. She had made it this far, and the thought of it was impossible for her to comprehend. The thought of not coming back the following year, like she had usually done, had made her a little sad if she was being honest. But for now, Marley wasn't going to think about that. She knew she was going to have to make the most of it. She had to make her final year at school a good one. Marley wasn't surprised that she hadn't gotten the head girl badge, but she knew the badge was in better hands, and she was quite proud of her friends for making it as head people. Marley cheered and clapped when appropriate, and it wasn't long before the food had appeared on the table. The Hufflepuff dug into her food, trying not to think about how this was going to be her final start of year feast.

 

[Fiona Burke]

Fiona wasn't sure how she felt being back at school. She had this feeling every year. Though during the break, spending time with Aroha, something had shifted. Fiona couldn't explain the feeling. She had no idea what or why there was a sudden shift, nor if she was sure it had been a good shift or not. Fiona sat beside Aroha, clapping throughout the ceremony. It seemed to be a big turnout for the Gryffindor house this year.

The food had appeared on the table, which had made Fiona realise how hungry she had been. Fiona had reached out for the buns, which were near the potatoes that Aroha had been reaching for and felt the girl's arm brush against her own, which had startled Fiona a little. Fiona quickly shook her head. "No, uh, you're okay, my fault" Fiona says softly with a small smile. A smile she couldn't really explain. Fiona grins. "Y-yeah, absolutely. Surprised they managed to keep the school up for so long" Fiona says with a nervous chuckle, stuttering up a little, as she then started to fiddle with one of her earrings, having a strange and unexplainable feeling all of a sudden. "Congrats on the uh badge by the way, well deserved" Fiona says with a grin, as she points out the badge that's pinned on Aroha's uniform.

@Aroha Blenheim

 

[Thomas Fitzgerald]

Thomas always had an uneasy feeling when returning to school. He was always homesick the first few weeks back to school. He hated the idea of being away from his family. It was only a couple more years, and then he was able to be with his family for longer periods of time. Thomas clapped along with the rest of the crowd, before digging into his food. He couldn't wait to head to bed almost immediately after this.

 

[Sophie Shepherd]

Sophie had mixed feelings about being back in school. She was still unsure about the whole magic thing, even though she ahd been at the school for a few years now. Learning about the magical world was a mixed bag. You didn't really know what to expect. She was still getting used to the moving and talking portraits that were around the school. She always seemed to jump when she noticed them talking or moving out of the corner of her eye. Sophie clapped along with the rest of the school. She hadn't realised it had been 50 years since the school had been around. She was quite impressed if she was being honest. Sophie immediately dug into her food.

 

[Theodore Harper]

Theo had been excited for this year. His brother was finally joining him this year, and he was quite happy about it. He couldn't wait to show his brother around the place and he was happy for his brother. He cheered when Oliver had been sorted. He was a little sad that he hadn't been sorted in the same house as Theo was in, but Gryffindor seemed like a good fit for Ollie. Theodore cheered and clapped loudly for his brother when he had been sorted. The Ravenclaw listened carefully to what the headmaster had to say before digging into the food that had been made from them.

 

[Declan Burke]

Declan was excited for another year of school. He had quite enjoyed his first year at Hogwarts, despite Molly's annoying lectures of him looking after his spider. He knew he was gonna be taking better care of his spider. No, that was a lie; he knew he wasn't going to be any better this year with his spider. Declan knew that he was gonna lose track of his spider the second he entered the school grounds. Which meant he knew he wasn't gonna stop hearing lectures about it from Molly. Declan hadn't paid attention to the ceremony nor what was being said by the headmaster. Declan had been busy thinking and daydreaming about his spider and the possibilities of what he'd be getting up to this semester, he had paid attention to the fact that the food had appeared.

 

[Eloise Flynn]

Eloise was absolutely happy to be back at school. To be with her friends and roommates, as well as learn about all things magic. Eloise was definitely excited about it all. Eloise wore her sunflower earrings for the new year, something to match her yellow robes. She listened to what the headmaster had to say and politely clapped along. It wasn't long before the food had appeared and they had dug in. As Eloise went to grab some carrots, she had overheard her roommate, Ruby and a first-year student talking. Eloise giggled at what Ruby had told the younger girl, but quickly covered her mouth, hoping that she didn't blow Ruby's cover. Eloise thought about adding something on, but she would've felt bad immediately if she had lied to the younger girl, so she kept quiet.

 

[Oliver Harper]

Oliver was just excited to be here. It was finally his turn to explore the castle and learn the ins and outs of it all. He couldn't sit still once he picked his spot on the table with the rest of the Gryffindors. He couldn't contain his excitement of it all that he had hardly paid attention to what was being said, only catching a few sentences here and there. It wasn't long before the food appeared on the table, and Oliver quickly grabbed the thing closest to him. "Woah! Fifty years of this place? Do you reckon they're gonna do anything special this year? Also, what was that about the Forbidden Forest? Why can't we go in there?" Ollie says to the nearest person. He had so many questions to ask about this place and was very curious about it all.

 

[Eris Athanasiou]

Eris was kind of glaring to where the hat had been sat after the ceremony. She knew that it was silly to hold a grudge towards a hat but she also knew that her sister had asked not to be in Gryffindor and the hat had listened. Now Eris herself hadn't explicitly said please no Slytherin, but she'd made it clear she wanted a window she could open. Being in the dungeons made that one quite hard.

Giving up on her small vendetta the first year glanced towards the food that had appeared. She supposed she could use a meal right about now, glancing towards to where she saw her sisters distinctive red hair a little further away at the table she took a plate and made her way over. "Excuse me, do you mind?" She said to the person sitting next to Gaia, noticing her sister already made a little space for her. Only needed the other person to shift just a little out the way and they'd all get to eat.

 

[Morrie Ayre]

Morrie really should remember by now to always sit closest to the doors, and furthest from the sorting where she was least likely to bothered by people who hadn't yet learnt to give her a wide berth. Instead, she sat in the wrong place and had a first year attempting conversation with her. Morrie gave the girl an unimpressed look before turning to Vanity, “Can you answer her?” Morrie muttered, “I don’t have the energy for enthusiastic first years today.”

@Vanity Mettlestone
@Amanita Castillo

 

[Ulric Vale]

Ulric had felt like someone had dumped a bucket of cold water on his head. The moment the hat had said Hufflepuff the sense of relief was immediate, only to quickly be replaced by confusion and a different kind of fear. He knew he was different from his siblings, but was he so different he didn't even belong in the same house? He was grateful knowing Osiris couldn't light his bed on fire and yet as he settled into his seat, the excited chatter and yellow robes made his head spin. He swallowed hard and was grateful when the food appeared. When had he gotten so thirsty? He poured himself some juice and downed it in only a few greedy gulps before refilling it. He didn't have much of an appetite but he served himself some food and shrunk into himself and hoped no one would pay him much attention at all.

 

[January Parish]

January was excited to be back at school. The train ride this time around had been much easier even if the homesickness was already settling in. The first few nights would be hard but she knew she could get through them. She was just happy if she could get through the year without crying. She watched the sorting ceremony with anticipation. She could hardly wait for next year when her sister would join her. She was already trying to figure out which house she'd end up in. As the feast began she served herself and turned her attention to her roommates. She smiled at Eloise and noticed her earrings. "Oh Eloise! I love the sunflowers!" she said excitedly. She didn't have her ears pierced yet and wondered if she could convince her mom to take her over the holidays. She'd be turning thirteen after all. @Eloise Flynn

 

[Doyle Mooney]

Doyle yawned as the sorting ceremony ended and the feast began. He thought the process of storing was still pretty cool but usually after the first few he got the point and he was eager for it go be over. It didn't help he had spent last night trying to stay up as late as he could with his old school friends before he had to leave on the train. The sun had been coming up when he eventually passed out, only to be dragged out of the house by his dad to make sure he made it on the train on time. He had napped a little on the train but his eyes still felt heavy and like it was full of cotton. When the food finally appeared he ended up staring at it for a minute before remembering he had to put it on his plate first.

 

[Eloise Flynn]

Eloise grins, gently touching the earrings that January had complimented. "Thanks, January! They're one of my favourites from my collection." Eloise says with a shy smile, giggling a little. She had plenty of favourites in her collection, but she knew that the ones she was wearing were among her favourites. "Do you have a flower you like a lot?" Eloise asks January, trying to have a small conversation at least. "Did you also have a nice break?"

@January Parish

 

[Aroha Blenheim]

Aroha smiled, somehow managing to keep her nerves at bay. She felt a strange tingle on her arm, as though them touching had somehow left something behind. It wasn't even that big of a deal, Aroha kept trying to tell herself. Just an accident. Aroha tuned out a little bit, but managed to pay attention when Fiona congratulated Aroha on her badge. "Hey, thanks!" Aroha looked down at it, forgetting it had been there. "I'm getting used to it still. Weird to be considered a role model. Maybe it was catching those snitches these past couple of years," Aroha said with a shrug. "Kinda wish you were a prefect too," she continued, dodging Fiona's gaze for a moment and sounding a little sentimental. "But hey, at least we get to play quidditch together." Aroha switched to a more jovial tone, bumping her shoulder against Fiona's gently.
@Fiona Burke

 

[Lucy Montague]

Lucy had been a little lost in thoughts when Briony had spoken to her. She looked over towards her, and gave a bright, but slightly shy, smile. "Thank you," Lucy said politely. She knew Briony a bit, and knew as well that she was sisters with Vanity. The association wasn't a pleasant one, but Lucy knew Briony wasn't like her sister - not in the way that counted. "That would be amazing if we had two Lucys in a row," Lucy said with a slight chuckle, then felt a pang as she realised she wouldn't be here to see it. This was her last year. She swallowed her feelings, "Ah, for the gravy?" Lucy said, finally noticing the small mess. "I don't, sadly, but I have noticed the cleaning charm works best when you feel calm. But that might just be me, now I think about it." Lucy didn't really know if that was placebo or not.
@Briony Mettlestone