Prof. Sky Alton

It’s time to celebrate what we achieved in the autumn term! And what a term it was. We welcomed a huge number of new students to the castle back in September and it’s been wonderful to see so many people, new and old, enjoying HOL and stopping by The Den to take part in our activities. Gryffindor also managed to catch up in the nick of time and finish the term more or less neck and neck with Hufflepuff in the cup standings, so a huge thank you and congratulations to all of you who contributed to that by earning points. Even if you can only earn a few here and there, we truly appreciate you! Now, the awards. They’re coming to you a little late this year due to an incident with an open window, a pair of nifflers and a rogue flying key (don’t ask). So let’s press on before anything else can happen! The Platinum Quill goes to the lion who has earned the most house points during the term. Our hard working autumn term winner is @Janne Halla who earned a dazzling 2027 points! Next up are our ruby awards, the Phoenix and Lionheart, presented to the Gryffindor and visitor with the highest ruby counts. Many congratulations to our own @Dibyarup James Potterfor an impressive haul of 883 and @Lex Green of Ravenclaw for an even more staggering total of 937! And now for a few awards given out by the staff… We hand out the Studious Simba award to a lion who has distinguished themselves in the classrooms. I’m delighted to present it to @Sophia Williams who has hit the ground running in their first term and achieved some very admirable grades indeed. An honourable mention goes to last term’s recipient @Doubhee Pevensy who has kept up their sterling work this term as well. The Consistent Cub is handed out to a particularly active lion who shows up for the house continuously and who courageously throws themselves into everything HOL has to offer. It isn’t possible to go anywhere in the castle and not encounter this particular lion hard at work and flying the flag for Gryffindor, so very well done to Dibyarup James Potter! Last, the Exploding Snap award is for someone who has lit up The Den with their creative and ingenious ideas. We’re proud to hand it to Janne Halla for his enterprising and entertaining Book Fair activity. Congratulations to our winners and thanks once again to all the lions and visitors who make The Den such a fun place to hang out. Butterbeer this way!

You’ll often hear people calling out for someone to throw them something as the floats go by. The krewe members riding on them will then toss small gifts into the crowd for them to catch. One of the most traditional Mardi Gras throws are beads in the Mardi Gras colours of gold, green and purple. See if you can get someone to throw you some! Solve this hashi puzzle to secure your beads: https://i.imgur.com/LPAlX1X.png Send your solution to me and Prof. Maxim Trevelyan via PM by 23:59 HOL-time on the 29th of February to earn 10 rubies!

Floats are big business at Mardi Gras! I’m not exaggerating – the krewes (the teams who help to organise the festival) work on them year round so they’re as elaborate and impressive as they can possibly be. Some floats are designed to be beautiful, while others are meant to be entertaining or funny. Sometimes a Mardi Gras parade will have a theme that all the floats need to follow in some way. Let’s do a spot of daydreaming while we’re waiting for the parade to begin, shall we? How would you decorate your very own Mardi Gras float? You can tell us about it in a description of 80 words or more or you can show us in a graphic. If you choose the graphic option, please keep your creation to 600x600 pixels and share it via an online image hosting website like imgur. To earn 10 rubies, post your float ideas below by 23:59 HOL-time on the 29th of February!

Do you know your X from XXXXX? This month we’re delving into one of the wizarding worlds most popular (and useful) textbooks: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander. This book was penned by one of the most accomplished magizoologists the world has ever seen and is based on his extensive hands-on experience with the creatures. It presents a detailed profile of each creature, including their characteristics, temperament and history. Task 1: https://gryff.net/index.php?/topic/4283-fantastic-beasts-task-1/ Task 2: https://gryff.net/index.php?/topic/4284-fantastic-beasts-task-2/ Task 3: https://gryff.net/index.php?/topic/4282-fantastic-beasts-task-3/

Has reading about all these wonderful beasts inspired you to see them in the flesh? Maybe put some of your new found magizoological knowledge into practice? Well, the publishers have developed a scheme where readers can apply to volunteer to work with the creature of their choice. The roles range from conservation to caretaking, so there should be something there to suit every aspiring magizoologist. Please fill out the following application: Which creature would you like to work with? (It must have featured in Fantastic Beasts) Why are you keen to work with this particular creature? What skills or aptitudes do you have that you think could prove useful in the role? Your responses to the questions should equal 80 words in total (not including the questions) To earn 10 rubies, please post your application below by 23:59 HOL-time on the 29th of February.

Thank you one and all for joining us on our wintery journey into the court of the fae! It's been a true pleasure to flip through your enchanting submissions and see how much effort (and magic) you've put in. Hopefully, you all made it back safely and haven't noticed any spells still in evidence. I've been assured by leading wizarding experts on faeries that any urges to burst into song or to dance wildly should wear off in time. Rubies should be with you now (and if not, please check your PMs to see if we've messaged you with a question about a submission) and if you spot any mistakes or miscalculations, please let me know so I can look into it for you. Happy new year!

Certified Lockhart experts.... Lex Green Tom Harik Artemisia Thorne Dibyarup James Potter Katherine Laurier Scarlet Robloutain Evie Figg

Dazzling smiles and brightly coloured robes at the ready because this month, we’re diving into Magical Me, the smash hit “autobiography” by the infamous Gilderoy Lockhart. When it was released, it was believed to be a true account of Lockhart’s daring deeds and selfless fight against the dark arts. Once it was discovered that most of the heroic acts Lockhart claimed credit for were actually performed by people he’d memory wiped though, the book gave readers the chance to get inside the mind of one of the wizarding world’s most audacious con artists. Task 1 – creating excerpts from the book: https://gryff.net/index.php?/topic/4270-magical-me-task-1/ Task 2 – Lockhart Trivia Challenge: https://gryff.net/index.php?/topic/4269-magical-me-task-2/ Task 3 - reinventing history, Lockhart style: https://gryff.net/index.php?/topic/4268-magical-me-task-3/

Magical Me is packed with tales of Gilderoy Lockhart’s (supposed) daring battles against the forces of darkness, as well as more personal details about his life growing up and his skincare routine. They’re all told in his classic, over the top style. Did you have a favourite (or least favourite) passage? We’d love to see it! Write a brief excerpt from Magical Me (80 words or more). It can be about any part of Lockhart’s life that you like – just remember to stay in character and keep it HOL appropriate. Post your responses below by 23:59 HOL-time to earn 10 rubies!

Now you’ve read Magical Me, you must be an expert on everything Gilderoy, right? Well, let’s find out! We’ve taken a leaf out of his book and created a quick pop quiz about the life and times of Gilderoy Lockhart, as he did for his students in 1992. Each question is worth 1 ruby: 1. What was Gilderoy Lochart’s birthday? 2. What quidditch position did Lockhart say he played? 3. What class of Order of Merlin did Lockheart receive? 4. By the time he got a teaching job at Hogwarts, how many times in a row had he won Witch Weekly’s “Most Charming Smile” Award? 5. What was his favourite colour? 6. What flamboyant variety of quill did he like to use for providing autographs and signing books? 7. With what did he decorate the walls of his office at Hogwarts? 8. Which of these is not a book by Gilderoy Lockhart: Gadding with Ghouls, Meeting with Merpeople or Year with the Yeti? 9. What was the title of Lockhart’s book on dealing with common household creature infestations? 10. Which of Lockhart’s superfans still wrote to him weekly while he was in St Mungo’s? Send your answers to me by 23:59 HOL-time on the 31st of January to earn 10 rubies!.

We now know that a lot of the stories Lockhart told in Magical Me were actually shamelessly stolen from other people. But what if he didn’t stop there? Pick a heroic event or notable invention from wizarding history that Gilderoy could have tried to take credit for and insert him into the story. How would he have said he’d saved the day or made it possible? Because we’re just having fun, please feel free to use things that happened before he was born or after his accidental memory wipe in 1992. You can either write Gilderoy’s version of history in at least 80 words or produce a graphic showing him in action and include a few lines of explanation. If you choose the graphics option, please keep it to 600 x 600 pixels, upload your submission to a graphics sharing website and share the link. Post your responses below by 23:59 HOL-time to earn 10 rubies!

Remember you have just over 24 hours to find your way out of the court of the fae! Everything is due on the 31st of December at 23:59 HOL-time. If you've done either task 1 or task 2 and you haven't requested the password yet, please do so ASAP so we can try and get it to you in time for you to enjoy the fun.

December is always a busy time in the castle and this year is no exception! First things first, it was great to see lions signing up for the annual Secret Elf Gift Exchange. Those of you who did should be receiving news of who you'll be creating a gift for very soon and then you'll have until the end of the month to perform your elfly duties and earn your points. Deadline: 31st December That's not the only thing going on on the HOL Forum though as we're having a party! Don your best dress robes and head over to Dancing in the Moonlight to join the festivities. There are 80 points and 2 awards up for grabs. Deadline: 31st December Lastly, they're building snowmen over in the Art Department. Wrap up warm and go join in! You could earn up to 20 points. Deadline: 31st December Let's finish the term on a glorious note, shall we? Let's go, Gryffindor, let's go!

Join us on adventure into the wonderous realm of the fae where they’re busy celebrating winter in all its icy, shimmering splendour. What will you see? Who will you meet? And perhaps most importantly, will you manage to find your way out again in time? After all, there are plenty of tales of mortals who have tarried too long in the land of the fae and either remained their forever or came back to find that the real world had moved on without them. There are 2 tasks in this main forum: you need to complete at least 1 of them to receive the password to the court itself (though you're welcome to complete them both, if you like). Once you’ve completed one of them, send a group message including at least 3 Gryffindor staff members (Prof. Maxim Trevelyan, Lorainia Riverrider, Reyyan Azkendra, Janne Halla or myself) and one of us will get back to you with the password as soon as we can. Please be patient! There are a further 8 tasks waiting for you in the subforum. That means there are 10 tasks overall, each worth 10 rubies. Anyone who completes all 10 will receive a 10 ruby bonus, meaning there are 110 up for grabs in total. If you are having difficulty with a task for accessibility reasons, please let a staff member know and we’ll work with you to find a suitable alternative. Everything is due by 23:59 HOL-time on the 31st of December. Have fun… but remember to keep your wits about you!

Have a question about our adventure into the realm of the fairies? Ask it here!

Wishing @Emerald Wolvenhowl an absolutely splendid birthday! I've got an absolutely huge pile of cauldron cakes here to celebrate and someone turn on some music.

A rowdy chorus of happy birthday is in order for Patrick James! I hope you've had a spectacular day so far. I just need to grab the golden snitch cookies from the oven and see what Peeves has done with the red and gold streamers I just put up (nothing good, I'm guessing).

Wishing Janne Halla an absolutely splendid birthday! The Honeydukes sweet buffet is right this way and watch out for the non-exploding baloons - Weasley's Wizard Wheezes say they're still experimenting, so they might not be as non-explody as promised.

Happy, happy birthday Lorainia! I’ll get the 7 layer red velvet cake - someone else fetch the confetti cannon.