The Ravenclaw Table 2023-2024

Sept 1, 2023

It felt uncanny sitting there, an empty plate before him and silver on either side. A bountiful feast before him, served family-style. Greedy, grubby hands pulling at the meats, spooning piles of rich, over-indulgent sides onto already over-burdened plates. The gluttony of the masses made a stranger of his appetite.

It was the welcoming feast, but this pose would be no different the days or even weeks that followed. The tall, thin, pallid youth who wore Ravenclaw colors sat on the edge of the long, narrow table. He preferred the edges rather than the sardine-packing endured by his contemporaries. It gave him a means of egress if needed. Others students at the Ravenclaw table would steal the occasional unrequired curious glance. He was aware of the well-earned rumors that circulated about him. He did little to address them, it was a meaningless exercise in futility.

His dirty-blond hair only served to mirror his already pale complexion. Even his pale eyes seemed a bit dull but seemed to stare right through anyone who dared to look at him. It was mostly the upper-years that talked about him. The first and the second years were too young to recall the years of his relevance. A few rumors would circulate to the first-years, the fact that he was supposed to be dead, that his father was a dark wizard (thanks a lot Hugh) and that his blood curse had infected the Slytherin house. There was 'excitement' for some sitting so close to an alleged 'danger' that they felt they could overcome with their imaginary martial skill or irrelevant wizardry, truly their ability to light the end of their wand would give him a sunburn if they maintained it long enough. If being the key word. Others whispered excitedly to each other, wondering if this new student had some incredible story to share about his past. The older students, however, were more skeptical. They were Ravenclaws and unlike their salad-loving rivals (Slytherin), their cuddly neighbors (Hufflepuff) or their brash allies (Gryffindor), they actually learned from the past.

As the meal went on, it became clear that he not like the others. He wasn't interested in making small talk or joining in on the laughter of those around him. Instead, he sat musing, looking ahead and lost in his own thoughts.

On this first night, shortly after the sorting ceremony ended and the doors to the rest of the castle proper were unlocked, he would wordlessly excuse himself from the table. The empty plate and unused utensils would serve as a place setting for some random student who would fill in the gap in his wake.

[Entered and Exited]

1 Sept

It was surreal, but here Bloom was.

She was sitting on the bench during her last first day of school. Now a Seventh year, she was placed at the end of the table. She looked over at the front-- closest to the professors-- watching the little First years get sorted into their house: Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Slytherin or Hufflepuff. It was always like watching a new episode every year, except this time had too many feels.

As she looked over at the front, she felt like she was the other book end of their experience. She remembered being a first year like it was yesterday, and now, here she was, a Seventh year supposedly getting ready for the real world. It was scary. The worst part of it all was that Bloom had no idea what she wanted to be when she graduated.

Hogwarts prepared all their students for different kinds of professions such as working with animals, becoming portioners or curse breakers, and more. And here she was, not knowing where her knowledge and skill would take her. Quite frankly, it may not even be as great as her classmates. Some wanted to be professional Quidditch players while others wanted to own a farm of their own.

One thing is for sure is that Bloom has a lot of self-searching to do this year.

Shea walked into the Great Hall. She gazed at the Sorting Hat. " I must be a Hufflepuff or a Slytherin.." Shea thought to herself. She looked at Griffindor table. There were students wearing scarlet and golden scarves. They seemed to be welcoming to all the first years. She knew how Harry Potter was in Griffindor. " Maybe Griffindor wouldn't be so bad." Shea looked and saw the Slytherin table. The table was filled with green and silver. Everybody was laughing and enjoying their meal, well not everybody. There was a boy who being lifted into the sky. " Wingardium Leviosa!". The boy looked ever so angry.
" Put me down! Now! " his robe flipped over his head. The table roared with laughter. Shea even let out a chuckle. The girl who was casting ' Leviosa' smirked at Shea. " Sounds like fun there." Shea giggled when the boy fell into the roasted corn. The next Shea knew she was bursting with laughter. The blonde girl standing next to Shea stared. Ravenclaw table seemed calm and peaceful. About 50% of the students were reading or studying. One of the first years was sorted into Ravenclaw and was handed an 'Astronomy' book. Shea's eyes widened when she saw Hufflepuff. All the ties and scarves were yellow and black. Many great wizards and witches were in Hufflepuff. Shea looked at her hands. She was shaking. She tried to take deep breaths and calm down but she kept trembling. The blonde girl next to her seemed to notice Shea shaking. " Hey, it's alright! I'm sure you'll be sorted into the proper house. Don't fret!" The blonde girl had a very calming voice. She had eyes that glowed. Shea had read about Luna Lovegood. The blonde girl reminded her of Miss Lovegood. But there was no time for admiring the girl, for Shea's name was called. " Shea Kaya Faye!" She took a deep breath and walked to the sorting hat. The old brown hat was placed upon her head. " Hmm...strange indeed. Not very brave I see, Not much patience either. Ooh! Very feisty! But yet so calm... better be..." there was a short pause. Shea wondered where she would be sorted. "..RAVENCLAW!" The Ravenclaw table applauded. Shea was struck with confusion. She stepped towards a small box that said ' Ravenclaw '. She picked it up. She thought for sure she was meant to be in Slytherin. She wasn't upset, just, suprised. Shea walked towards Ravenclaw table. She couldn't help but feel misplaced. Shea took a seat next to a boy. Little did she know that the boy was her childhood bestfriend. Shea was trapped in her thoughts. A fellow Ravenclaw gave her a book. " Welcome to Ravenclaw miss faye!" Shea accepted the book and reached for some soup. This table was gonna be her home.

It was officially Charlie's start of her second year at Hogwarts. Last year, Charlie had been sorted into the house of Ravenclaw. She had made a best friend, lost a best friend, and regained a best friend. She had worked hard in her studies, joined the Quidditch team, played as the first sting keeper on The Ravenclaw Quidditch team. And now, it was a new chapter of her very own Hogwarts story. She was ready for it to be her best year ever, and she wanted to do well in everything.

It was her first year of watching the sorting ceremony and not participating in it. She watched as the headmaster began to unroll the scroll and it hit the ground and the proceeded to continue to roll across the floor for several feet before it came to a stop. This was going to be a long ceremony, Charlie thought as she got comfy on the hard wooden bench she was sitting on. There was a large segment of the table closest to the ceremony that was empty. Charlie knew that this would be where the new Ravenclaws would sit, and officially join her house.

The sorting began, and Charlie watched as the old hat was placed on each child's head and as it selected what house they would join. After she watched a good amount of students sort into their houses, she zoned out. When she zoned back in, the feast was in full swing.

The food appeared on the table, magically replenishing as students took as much as their plates could hold. With plates overflowing and happy chatter of a new year starting, Charlie began to eat. And eat. She ate until she was full, and followed the Ravenclaws up the millions, maybe even billions of stairs to her common room.

[entered and exited]

9/1/23

Gigi, among the others, was welcomed into the Great Hall for her Sorting. Trying to calm her nerves, Gigi looked around at all the different tables. "Gryffindor wouldn't be so bad', she thought. "Though I'm not that brave. I really don't think I'm a Slytherin, either. Probably Ravenclaw.' Gigi saw the kids interacting with each other and wished she could be among them. She wasn't necessarily the most daring when it came to being up on a stage with everyone watching her. The Hufflepuffs were talking and laughing, exchanging jokes and catching up with their friends. The Gryffindors were a bit rowdier, some arm wrestling, some conversing with passing ghosts. The Slytherins barely made room for their new additions, pushing and shoving to get a good seat. The Ravenclaws, however, were barely talking, each and every one of them with their nose in a book. And those books didn't look altogether easy. Gigi smiled, imagining herself seated with the Ravenclaws. She wouldn't mind that house too much, as reading was her favorite thing to do. A girl to Gigi's left elbowed her. " Look over there at Slytherin's table.' Gigi looked and frowned. "What are they doing?' She asked the girl. "They're practicing transfiguration on the food.' The girl responded. Gigi turned away. She would've been fine with it, if they hadn't been turning a second years food into worms.

Gigi barely payed attention as the Sorting began. A girl was welcomed into Gryffindor, great. A boy was nearly paraded to Slytherin table, fantastic. Gigi let her mind wander, taking in the architecture and all the ghosts. The girl elbowed her again. "Are you Gigi Montez?' She asked. "Yeah, why?' Gigi responded. "It's your turn to get Sorted.' Gigi paled. "Hey, don't worry, it's not that bad. We don't hear anything except what house you're in, that way all the private stuff is between you and the hat.' Gigi didn't hear a word. Pale and trembling, she made her way up to the podium. "Oh, yes, a Montez perhaps? You would do well in any of the houses, a courage yet to be discovered, a ready mind, a patience enough for millions, and a fierce desire to prove yourself...well, better be, RAVENCLAW!!!

Gigi sighed with relief and scampered towards the Ravenclaw table. It felt like a weight had been lifted off her chest. Gigi was handed a book, and began to read....

Corinthia had been fidgety throughout the agonizinly-long sorting ceremony, and nearly cried with joy when she was sorted. Not because she was particularly happy about being sorted into Ravenclaw (knowing little about the wizarding world, what house she was in made no difference to her), but because she could finally eat.

"Finally! I'm staaaarving!" She blurted out, relieved. Corinthia glanced around self-consciously. Hopefully no one had heard her verbal outburst. She promised Mam that she would be good this year, but sometimes words just flew out of her no matter how hard she tried. Oh well.

Corinthia skipped to the Ravenclaw table, taking a seat next to a tall blond girl. Many of the students around her seemed to be more reserved compared to the other, rowdier houses. It might take a while to make some friends, she thought. Perhaps an older student would take her under her wing, or she could just hang out in the castle bestiary and talk to the local wildlife. Wait, was there a bestiary in the castle? She'd have to ask around.

Corinthia looked at her silver plate, astonished to see it fill up with food. This seemed to be one of the perks of going to a magical boarding school: endless food! Could she request any food she wanted? A million questions raced through her mind as she inhaled her sheperd's pie. She probably looked like a wild animal with the way she was eating, but didn't care. She hadn't eaten anything since breakfast aside from a licorice wand.

In between mouthfuls she glanced up to admire the Halloween decorations in the Great Hall. Spooky jack-o-lanterns floated from the ceiling, decorated with an incredible variety of faces. Maybe she could have a pumpkin carving contest with her peers later on. She also noticed many, many ghosts floating about, which enthralled her. She wondered if they were part of the Halloween decor, or if they lived in the castle year-round. She'd have to ask them how they died, but it was equally fun to people watch (or, in this case, ghost watch) and invent stories about how they met their grisly end.

Resisting the impulse to pass her hand through a ghost to test its legitimacy, Corinthia turned back to her meal, now replaced with treacle tarts. Oh goody!

RAVENCLAW!

The sorting hat’s cry must’ve seemed much louder in Wren’s mind than anyone else’s, but she imagined it shook the hall. Still shaking, she stepped off the stool and returned the hat to the headmaster. Looking around the hall, she spotted the table of blue and bronze. Well, I guess that table’s mine now. She walked over, and took a seat by a girl who must have been pretty hungry, the way she was eating. Wren was fine with that. The more people ate, the less she’d have to talk to them. She took a bite of something brown- probably a meat dish, although she was still getting used to British food. Suddenly, all the food on the table became desert. Startled, she took a tentative bite of cake. It was delicious, but it reminded Wren of her grandmother’s cooking. She missed her so much. Taking a deep breath, she turned. “Um, hi, what’s your name?” she asked the girl beside her, painfully conscious of how much her American accent stood out.

Mentioned: @Corinthia MacAllistair

Hearing a sudden voice next to her, Corinthia paused her eating. Lifting up a finger to indicate, "just one moment," she finished chewing her treacle tart and swallowed. Desperately hoping she didn't have any bits of food stuck between her teeth, she turned to face the student who spoke to her.

The question-asker was a petite brunette girl with green eyes and the blue colors of Ravenclaw gracing her robes. Noticing the colors, Corinthia looked down at her own robes. How did she not notice until now that the linings of the robes changed to match the house colors? Of course!

"Hello, sorry. You caught me mid-chew," she said, slightly embarrassed. She wouldn't be shocked if she looked like a ravenous wolf to the people around her. "I'm Corinthia, though everyone just calls me Cory. I'm a first year; are you new here too?" She racked her scattered brain, trying to remember if she'd seen the girl during the Sorting Ceremony. Her mind was too distracted with thoughts of dinner then; she doubted she retained any names or faces from the first years sorted tonight.

She noted the girl's unusual accent, trying to place it. She sounded American based on the few American TV shows she'd seen growing up, but she couldn't place the region. Either way, she seemed nice enough. "You've got a bonny accent. Where are you from?"
@Wren Sinclair

Wren attempted a smile, though it probably came out as more of a grimace. Great, she’d gotten herself into an actual conversation. Maybe it was a good thing, though. If spending a year without any friends hadn’t been great, seven years without friends would be a nightmare. Realizing what she looked like, she tried an actual smile, and managed a small one.

“I’m from Florida.” She answered ghe girl- Cory’s- question tentatively. Pausing, she blurted out. “That’s in America.” then blushed. What kind of dummy wouldn’t know Florida’s in America? “I’m Wren, and you can call me… actually, it’s just Wren. My dad’s a diplomat- oh yeah, he’s a no-maj, I mean muggle- so we had to move to England… so, now I’m here.” She stuttered. Gosh, what did it take for her to have a normal conversation? “Um, yeah, I’m first year. My mom’s a witch. So I’m half-blood.” Wren searched around for things to say. “Umm… do you have any pets? My cousins used to have a gnome but I think they were joking when they said it was a pet…” By now, it seemed like Wren had two options in a conversation. Talk too little, or talk too much. No middle ground.

Mentioned: @Corinthia MacAllistair