Aurelia Valentine yawned as she entered the Great Hall, her brown eyes squinting slightly from the lights that greeted her mercilessly. The large Christmas trees stood on the podium near the High Table with different coloured baubles and Christmas glittering hangings. The enchanted ceiling of the Great Hall highlighted the snowy weather outside: artificial snowflakes falling slowly and stopping near the floating candles and lanterns, not touching the four main tables or the marbled floors at all. Wearing a dark green turtleneck sweater with her black walnut wand tucked in one of the pockets of her jeans, the Hufflepuff witch ambulated towards the Hufflepuff Table.
The Great Hall is buzzing with idle chitter-chatter of other students; few students are playing Gobstones under their respective tables thus far, snickering while the stones squirted foetid-smelling liquid in their opponents' faces. But several students quietly consumed their breakfast for different objectives, of course. For Aurelia, she's always tetchy in the mornings, and it is recommended not to converse with people who terribly despised wintery mornings such as this. Grabbing a golden plate, she forked a toast, bacon, and eggs. For a weather like this, she also helped herself with some soup.
Even without classes, Aurelia and her beloved leather satchel are inseparable. Believing that something important may come up in need of materials, she slings it securely over her shoulder. As she chewed her food, the Hufflepuff witch took out a small notebook and a muggle ballpoint pen. In her honest opinion, quills and inkwells as well as parchments tied her preference for a Dark Academia aesthetic, but if she needs a quick jotting-down task, her trusty small notebook and muggle ballpoint pen did do the job spectacularly.
It's a wintry Saturday morning. So her to-do list only consisted of assigned readings. The lack of connection with other students did narrow down her tasks; even as she ate her breakfast and focused on reading her to-do list, Aurelia could hear the others planning their sneaking schemes to the ancient wizarding village beyond the grounds later on that day. Perhaps stretching their remaining days in Hogwarts before they all go home for the holidays. She tried not to think about how she was staying over during the holiday break, preventing herself from triggering the homesickness she was enduring these days. What if, for the fun of it, she just collected all the names of these rule-breaking buffoons and just tattle on a prefect or a professor? Yeah, if she's striving to be unlikeable.
Aurelia looked up from her small notebook when owl hootings and the sounds of flapping wings resounded through the hall. The daily owl post! Owls hovered and swirled over them, the enchanted ceiling undisturbed, as the owls swooped down to their tables. Some landed gracefully, some landed groggily and right on the food. Two owls landed in front of Aurelia. One owl, after dropping an envelope, immediately flew away; while the other waited for her to drop a few Knuts inside the money pouch that is tied in one of its talons as it dropped a few newsletters she subscribed to.
“Thanks,” Aurelia mumbled as she deposited a few Knuts inside the money pouch before pushing her golden plate gently towards the owl. The owl obligingly pecked on one of her toasts. “Sorry, I know you would have preferred an owl treat.” The owl only tilted its head before it flew away along with the other school owls. The Hufflepuff witch deliberately ignored the envelope—knowing it was from her mother—as she reached for the newsletters instead. Aurelia subscribed to several newsletters to expand her horizons, of course, like Perusing Potion-Making and Astronomy At Present. Aurelia indulged herself in the newsletters as she enjoyed her breakfast, everything in the Great Hall a blur.
Upon finishing her reading and breakfast, Aurelia tucked the newsletters and the unopened envelope inside her leather satchel carefully before sipping her hot cocoa. Now that she was free of tasks—leaving the readings until afternoon—she contemplated on whatever venture she'll spend her morning with. Exercise? Now that's a waste of time. She never exercises. In fact, if she tried to exercise, that would only mean that she was desperate to distract herself from her restless mind. Aurelia let out a huff in exasperation. She wanted to spend her free time in actually a worthwhile endeavour. The Hufflepuff witch's brown eyes sweeped the Great Hall.
Come to think of it, Aurelia hadn't explored the whole of Hogwarts yet. Of course, she only read Hogwarts: A History by Bathilda Bagshot without actually thoroughly examining the entire castle. Is that how an academic should act? No, an adamant no! She is probably a disgrace to the academic world. This young Hufflepuff witch is also missing the prospect of writing a short article or essay about Hogwarts! Feeling like her heart jumped right out of her chest in a wild sense of Eureka, she flipped a page from her small notebook, ignoring the other Hufflepuffs also filing in the Great Hall for breakfast, furiously scribbling with her muggle ballpoint pen.
Hogwarts' Informative Exploration, Aurelia scribbled. In short, H.I.P. She thoughtfully tapped the muggle ballpoint pen on her chin, her eyebrows creased. H.I.P? What kind of acronym is that? Her brown eyes sweeped the entirety of the Great Hall, pressuring her brain to think of something. Distractedly, she watched as artificial ice crystals plummeting down in a leisurely pace, only disappearing once they reached the hovering candles and lanterns. Of course, it's winter already. Wintry Hogwarts' Informative Exploration (W.H.I.P.). Aurelia tore the current page and scribbled furiously.
Satisfied with her big brain moment, Aurelia stood up from the Hufflepuff table as more students filed in the Great Hall. To continue her academic exploration, she has to fetch her Hogwarts: A History copy in her trunk from the girl's dormitories for reference and to assist her endeavour.
