Prof. Sky Alton

Mmm, I definitely think a group trip to Flourish and Blots is in order. There's just something so hushed and magical about book shops (well, maybe not when Gilderoy Lockhart is doing a signing....). I could just spend hours admiring the glossy covers and smelling that new book smell. Weird? Me? Never!

True Loves autumn/fall

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design

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The class list is incredible this year. That's great in that there's plenty of excellent choices.... but it also makes it even more of a challenge to trim your choices down to 5 or less. ;) So, have you managed it yet? What are you taking? Any you're particularly excited about?

You hurry towards the castle steps, your mind already on getting into the warm and tucking into some food after the long journey aboard the Hogwarts Express. Bump! You stop dead as you crash into a wall of people. There’s a huge crowd gathered around the castle’s front steps. You try to back up but the people behind you make it difficult. You hear a great commotion and then there’s a flash, bang and an eruption of pink and silver sparks. The Situation: Peeves the poltergeist has decided to celebrate the start of term by not letting anyone in (or out) of the castle’s main doors. He’s flinging dung bombs, magical fireworks and all sorts of other projectiles at the head of anyone (student or professor) who gets anywhere near the steps if they can’t guess his ever-changing password. Remember to duck! Location: You may roleplay around the front steps of Hogwarts castle. If you’re able to get past Peeves (who will be popping into the thread from time to time), then you can proceed to the entrance hall if he let’s you through. Big if! Remember to read the guidelines before diving in. Have fun!

The easiest way to help out your house and show your lion’s pride is to earn points! There are lots of ways you can do this so you’re bound to find some that play to your strengths. In this post, I’ll give you a brief run-down of the regular point earning opportunities available to you. Whenever a new one opens up throughout the term, we’ll post it as a reply so keep checking back! The first and most obvious is to take part in classes. Most classes will give you the chance to earn 60 points a month through homework and extra credit. If you take several classes (even if you don’t have the time for the maximum of 5 every term), those 60 points soon mount up to quite a tidy haul. Class sign-up opens on 1st September 2021 and will remain open until December 20th so remember to put your name down for the classes that interest you and get sending in that homework! (It’s always a good idea to keep an eye on the individual assignment deadlines so that you don’t run out of time or put too much pressure on yourself) The next are the creative projects offered each month by the Library and art departments. If you enjoy getting artsy or brushing up on your writing, visit the 'Departments' tab on the main website. Don't be shy: your submissions are anonymous during the rating period. You can get started by going to your profile and telling everyone 'How you Got Into Harry Potter' in the designated section - that will earn you a cool 10 points! Finally there's the HOL Newspaper. This is a great chance to earn plenty of points by writing about what interests you. If articles and reviews aren’t your thing, it will also offer creative prompts and the chance to submit your own puzzles, graphics and more. Keep an eye on the Newspaper section of the main HOL Forum for updates about the latest issue. https://hol.org.uk/forum/viewforum.php?f=612 Throughout the term, there will be unique and exciting activities to take part in which will give you the chance to earn points along the way. Remember to check the replies to this thread for announcements and reminders about anything that might be occurring!

Welcome to another school year here at HOL and in Gryffindor Tower! I can’t wait to see what the year has in store for us all. I hope you’ll all join us on an adventure or two we have planned... If you’re new to The Den (our nickname for the Common Room), stop by the ‘Welcome to Gryffindor’ thread to get a lowdown of everything that happens in the house. https://gryff.net/index.php?/topic/3348-welcome-to-gryffindor/ Join in on the latest roleplay, throw yourself into games in Peeves’ Place or join the discussions in the Fat Lady’s Portrait. We’ll be starting preparations for our annual Gryfftoberfest celebrations very soon so keep an eye out for the traditional motto contest in a couple of weeks. Whatever you get up to this year: try new things, do your best and, most importantly, have fun!

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At long last, I'm hear to thank you all for coming to the first ever Wizarding Film Festival! I also need to apologise for the delay - one of the stars wandered off with our records thinking they were a new script. It's been wonderful spending the summer with you all, experiencing a little movie magic. Unfortunately we're not able to award rubies before September officially begins because of how they're set up but we'll get to that as soon as we can at the start of term. In the meantime, please do let us know if you spot any rubies missing from your total and we'll look into it for you: Astor Arensin: 41 Aurelia West: 48 Emily Spencer: 99 Evelin Stockom: 35 Kendra Givens: 31 Maxim Trevelyan: 200 Patrick James: 10 Prof. Rorey Padfoot: 14 Prof. Scarlet Leslie-Lewis: 20 Prof. Sindor Aloyarc: 16 Prof. Tarma Amelia Black: 200 Prof. Will Lestrange: 12 Richard Haiti: 20 Rose Pottermore: 2 Silvana Mandeville: 45 Violet Westport: 37 Great work, everyone. Cut!

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You have just over 48 hours to make the most of the festival before it closes! Everything's due by 11:59 PM HOL-time on 18 August (this Wednesday).

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On your way towards the exit, you encounter a group of people having a passionate discussion. “Films may be a new invention in the wizarding world,” says one man with a superior sniff, “But muggles have known about it for over a century. They’ve gotten rather good at translating stories onto the big screen, you know.” “Oh?” says a woman, a little doubtfully. “Indeed!” the man says, throwing up his hands. “Why I know of some which are so popular that they’ve even been made into films multiple times over…” Perhaps he’s right. But this time, let’s make it a magical remake. We’d like you to adapt a popular muggle film for a wizarding audience. Whether that’s introducing magic to a film without it, tweaking one with magic so it matches up with magic as Hogwarts teaches it or something else entirely, we can’t wait to see it. Please write a new blurb for the film with your wizarding twists incorporated into it and tell us why you made those changes. You could also include notes on magical special effects or even a brief sample of the dialogue if you like. Your write-up should be at least 120 words and the film you pick must be suitable for people of all-ages. Also, if you can, please try to keep spoilers to a minimum - the forum does have in-built spoiler tags if you’d like to use them. Post your responses below by 11:59 PM HOL-time on 18 August to earn 15 rubies!

It’s our last trip to the Gryffindor movie theatre. Settle in, grab your favourite snack and watch the cinematic magic unfurl. For each of these weekly screenings, we’re inviting you to pick a Harry Potter film to watch. You should then go and watch the one you picked and come back to offer your thoughts. And when we say your thoughts, it really can be anything at all. Perhaps you like (or dislike) a particular scene. Maybe there’s a mistake or inaccuracy that bugs you. Maybe you’d like to cast somebody different in one of the roles. Providing it’s HOL appropriate and polite, anything goes. There is no wordcount but please try to put a bit of effort in. This final screening is a wildcard! We’re inviting you to pick any of the films you haven’t already posted about for the activity. If you’ve watched (and posted) about all of them, then feel free to delve into the Fantastic Beasts franchise or a fan made film instead. Also, if you’re unable to access a copy of any of the films, feel free to join in the discussion anyway. The screening part is purely for fun. You’ll earn 5 rubies if you post your thoughts below by 11:59 PM HOL-time on 18 August.

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I slap Richard to say welcome to The Den!