A Dumbfounded Hufflepuff
OPEN to staff that "Happens" to walk in on Donny. Mostly interacting with NPC sorting hat
Italics=Sorting hat Normal format=Donny
Donny walked into the room, afraid, but set out on a mission. He'd done earlier as he's always done best, eavesdrop. It wasn't particularly difficult to do in a school full of gossip and drama, but it was necessary for the most part. He walked up to the giant bronze phoenix, one that looked like the one accompanying the famous Albus Percival-Wulfric- Brian Dumbledore on his favorite Chocolate frog cards. "Greg!" he said, and the grand stairwell spiraled open and the small Hufflepuff boarded the stone steps. But how did he find this password out you ask? Well, a certain Gryffindor leaked it to a certain Ravenclaw, who leaked it to a loud Slytherin who yelled it out in the great hall, when a certain Hufflepuff heard it over a bowl of porridge. It also was the name of Lear's pet pygmy puff.
Donny made it up the stairwell, breathing hard. It wasn't a particularly "Still" stairwell, but nor was anything that was considered an everyday object in the muggle world. But that was one of the advantages of being a student here at Hogwarts. But Donny had a bigger journey he was set out on. A bigger question that was yearning to be answered in the pit of his stomach. He was seeking a familiar--well hat. One that made all the decisions here at Hogwarts. The Sorting Hat. This Hufflepuff (Donny) needed to know why he was put in Hufflepuff.
"You yearn for the chance to become someone, but are still quite modest yes? You also love a little trouble, hm?" The sentiment rolled in his mind. "You value fairness, and second chances, and will always try your best yes?" "Better be... Hufflepuff!" He continued to reminisce.
Donny needed to know why he wasn't put in Gryffindor. Why he, the bold person everyone talked about behind his back, was also the modest, odd-ball Hufflepuff. "Um...hello?" he asked out loud, looking for a certain torn, and worn hat. Then he saw it--
"Donnovan Jason Perrywinkle; the wise Hufflepuff eh?" an old ragged voice called out. Donny turned to see the old hat staring into a fire on an old bookshelf. "Uh...y-yeah." Donny replied, fiddling with the insides of his robe pockets. "I visioned this time would come. So did your insolent grandfather." said the hat, following a confused Donny. He knew his grandfather was opposed to all houses other than Gryffindor, but Donny didn't know he had a history with a magical hat. "W-what about him? My grandfather--what does he have to do with anything?" Donny asked sternly, needing answers.
"He was a self consumed fool, and I regret putting him in a house that values common sense and bravery. He was the exact opposite of a Gryffindor, a coward who showed off for his gang of idiots." said the hat. Donny continued to stare confusedly, wondering whether he should stick around longer, he didn't want to be caught. "Well, what did he do? My question is--" But Donny was cut off-
"Your grandfather found me one day, trying to sneak into previous headmaster Dumbledore's office to get hold of his lemon drops. When he came across it I demanded him to stop-obviously my voice was better then- but he pulled me off the shelf, and stomped me in front of his gang. He's always had anger issues! So...I promised that I would break his pride. I would make the generation after his own son miserable, by putting them in his second least favorite house-Hufflepuff." He finished, Donny looking horror stricken.
"So--so you put me in Hufflepuff out of pure SPITE! You-you--If I could stomp you right now I would! You ruined all of my possible chances, all of it!" Donny cried. He was about to lunge at that stupid hat when a certain tall figure came in--
“It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.” - Albus percival wulfric brian dumbledore “The ones who love us never really leave us, you
can always find them in here.” - Sirius black
Strength: 6, Agility: 10, Control: 8, Stamina: 6
A Dumbfounded Hufflepuff
Strange, it was as if the sorting had admitted it was wrong. That it lied. The sorting hat never did such a thing before, and it would not on this day either. Donnovan would hear the sound of a pair of fingers snapping, the hat was where it always was sitting up high on a shelf. However there was a man seated in front of the aged and tattered hat, Headmaster Solomon Lear. His right elbow resting on the clean surface of his desk, a stack of papers on either side. "Did you really think that the Headmaster's Office would be unlocked? Or that the password to my stairs would be Greg. They are all named Greg." Yes, every last one of them was named Greg. It was easier to remember that way.
The circular room was warmly lit under a candlelit chandelier and a crackling fire in the hearth. The sorting hat would start to sing, otherwise the room was silent less the whir of unmarked and ill-defined silvery and coppery devices that stood on spindle-legged tables scattered about the room. The room had not changed since Headmaster Winslow and Blackburn had left, the only mark Solomon had made was the tiny, furry critters that scampered underfoot. The Headmaster had a soft-spot for Pygmy Puffs -- both purple and pink, and like an infestation confined to this singular space little eyes would peer around massive tomes and various mystical and mundane baubles as the Headmaster stood to his full height. On first glance Solomon looked like a doddering old man with an affinity for leather wrapped plate armor, but his appearance belied a vigor that could be felt more than seen.
"Sit," Solomon demanded, his voice sharper than expected. Donnovan was quickly turning into a bully rather than a hero, a concerning truth that the Headmaster was left to bear witness to.
The paintings were pretending to slumber, but it was a farce as they listened in with a keen curiosity. A Pygmy Puff would scamper across the floor in front of Donnovan. "You have... a lot of demands for a first year still struggling to light the end of their wand. Who would have thought that a emerald tie would be of greater value than a sapphire or ruby one. You are a Hufflepuff because that is where you are supposed to be. No spite, no generational vengeance for a thrashing that would have led to your ancestors's assured expulsion." That was a warning more than a history lesson, destroying or attacking a sentient item with such significance as the sorting hat would have resulted in consequences that Donnovan or his ancestor were ill-prepared for. In a room full of witnesses, each and every one of these paintings, he never would have gotten away with it. Something a Slytherin would have thought of, but Donnovan was not a Slytherin in the making.
"Hufflepuffs derive their strength and power from their friends, the alliances they made. Their friends would die for them and they would die for their friends. You need friends to reach your potential," Solomon explained as simply as he could. It was why the Hufflepuffs last year were able to survive the tribulations he had made them endure in preparation of the gloved man and his mask. It was why that House was the only House he did not have to worry for, they had each other.
The circular room was warmly lit under a candlelit chandelier and a crackling fire in the hearth. The sorting hat would start to sing, otherwise the room was silent less the whir of unmarked and ill-defined silvery and coppery devices that stood on spindle-legged tables scattered about the room. The room had not changed since Headmaster Winslow and Blackburn had left, the only mark Solomon had made was the tiny, furry critters that scampered underfoot. The Headmaster had a soft-spot for Pygmy Puffs -- both purple and pink, and like an infestation confined to this singular space little eyes would peer around massive tomes and various mystical and mundane baubles as the Headmaster stood to his full height. On first glance Solomon looked like a doddering old man with an affinity for leather wrapped plate armor, but his appearance belied a vigor that could be felt more than seen.
"Sit," Solomon demanded, his voice sharper than expected. Donnovan was quickly turning into a bully rather than a hero, a concerning truth that the Headmaster was left to bear witness to.
The paintings were pretending to slumber, but it was a farce as they listened in with a keen curiosity. A Pygmy Puff would scamper across the floor in front of Donnovan. "You have... a lot of demands for a first year still struggling to light the end of their wand. Who would have thought that a emerald tie would be of greater value than a sapphire or ruby one. You are a Hufflepuff because that is where you are supposed to be. No spite, no generational vengeance for a thrashing that would have led to your ancestors's assured expulsion." That was a warning more than a history lesson, destroying or attacking a sentient item with such significance as the sorting hat would have resulted in consequences that Donnovan or his ancestor were ill-prepared for. In a room full of witnesses, each and every one of these paintings, he never would have gotten away with it. Something a Slytherin would have thought of, but Donnovan was not a Slytherin in the making.
"Hufflepuffs derive their strength and power from their friends, the alliances they made. Their friends would die for them and they would die for their friends. You need friends to reach your potential," Solomon explained as simply as he could. It was why the Hufflepuffs last year were able to survive the tribulations he had made them endure in preparation of the gloved man and his mask. It was why that House was the only House he did not have to worry for, they had each other.
There is something about ambition, how it not only propels you but also defines you.
A Dumbfounded Hufflepuff
Reducio
Changing Donny's font: Bold
Donny jumped. Headmaster Lear was in the midst of his argument with a magical hat! But surely, he had to understand, and after all, at the time Dumbledore was in the chair Lear now sat in when this "Incident" happened with Donny's grandfather...and this hat. A pink pygmy puff scuttled across his feet, almost tickling them, but Donny could not show any affection, he had to get his point across, as stubborn as he was.
Learn instructed, Donny found himself slipping into a large chair face to face with-the-headmaster! He tried to bite his tongue, but Lear was claiming that the hat never lied, but also implying that the hat was not telling the truth. "I-I was-- my, potential?" Donny started, but then came to his senses, he was tired of lying. "Ugh-I'm not good at this...anyways, I'm sorry for breaking-well, walking in here, I've just been stumped. All of the year since that hat chose me to go to Hufflepuff, I've been kind of in a personal crisis?" he said, a questionable tone on his tongue.Sit,
He was stumped. He never understood anything, and try as he might, he always came across as the troubled, naive little preteen that everyone dreaded to get involved with. "I-I need some assurance you know?" he asked, knowing that an 11 year old wasn't due to relate with the headmaster. "Why did he say such things? The hat? You say it shall not lie, but you also imply-or sorry, say it is wrong about my grandfather. Not to be a bother, I can leave if so...but why?" he said finally, Why was the constant vocabulary he used....
“It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.” - Albus percival wulfric brian dumbledore “The ones who love us never really leave us, you
can always find them in here.” - Sirius black
Strength: 6, Agility: 10, Control: 8, Stamina: 6
A Dumbfounded Hufflepuff
I apologize for my slow reply. There was a staff matter that took my time these past few days.
-- Solomon
Solomon cocked his head to the side. "Illusions can lie, they can tell you the things you want to hear, what the maker wants you to hear," Solomon explained. Yes, it was simply an illusion. "Do you honestly think that your ancestor would have graduated from the academy after assaulting a sentient object severely enough to lead to a multi-generational vendetta?" Illusions are as powerful as the belief possessed by those affected by an illusion and they were the most effective when they reflected what the subject already believed or wanted to believe.
"I was the Head of Hufflepuff," Solomon announced. "I am quite fond of the House, the students and their potential," he added. Those kids were survivors. "A House hardly defines you, you define your House," Solomon continued. Just because a House carries a reputation does not mean that every student adheres or conforms to a singular, tight standard. "Some of the gentlest and kindest children I have ever seen have come from Slytherin, yet they are still driven primarily by their ambition. I have seen children of questionable intelligence or even possess violent propensities come from Ravenclaw, but being smart is not a true synonym of cleverness." This could be your Kaegen Deathmote for instance, the boy was a few crayons short... but his actions were still thoughtful, even if the result was paranoid and truly mad. "Your relationships will be a big part of who you are, something you have hopefully started to realize. Hufflepuff is your intended home because you need friends, your friends need you. You are not intended to be a lone wolf and you will find yourself your weakest and most vulnerable when you are." Like now.
"Where did you think you belonged and why?" From the looks of things, Solomon wondered if the boy thought he should have been a Slytherin. His aggression and his anger. A projected attribute of the House. Being ambitious had nothing to be with being violent, cruel, dangerous or evil, much like friendship and fidelity hardly meant that one would be in the background, that they were nothing more than a support source or utterly irrelevant.
There is something about ambition, how it not only propels you but also defines you.
A Dumbfounded Hufflepuff
Donny considered what Lear had to say. He after-all, didn't know he was once head of Hufflepuff, or anything else concerning his past, but he did know he wasn't having an illusion. Even if he was, it was hard to have an argument with yourself when your perfectly sane, unlike some. He shuffled in his seat, looking down and pondering, still taking as what Lear had to say, as it did usually for Donny. It wasn't that Donny was slow but he did have difficulty thinking before speaking. "I guess...maybe it is my imagination, in a way." said Donny slowly untruthfully, though everything else the headmaster had said was clear and truthful.
"I just...I grew up always being pressured to do good, get in the right house-Gryffindor- and...well, my grandfather was really mad about my being in Hufflepuff. And what would my dad-well, he's in Azkaban but that's besides the point. But my grandma- she was in Hufflepuff. In fact-*laugh*- she knew somehow I would be put in Hufflepuff , even before she died." Said Donny, realizing his Anecdote was more like his life story. "I guess, I should be better in the way I act. For Hufflpuffe's sake." He said, biting his lip. "Thanks, mate-I-I mean Headmaster Lear- *Short sniff*." He said, letting the wrong word slip for authority.
"I just...I grew up always being pressured to do good, get in the right house-Gryffindor- and...well, my grandfather was really mad about my being in Hufflepuff. And what would my dad-well, he's in Azkaban but that's besides the point. But my grandma- she was in Hufflepuff. In fact-*laugh*- she knew somehow I would be put in Hufflepuff , even before she died." Said Donny, realizing his Anecdote was more like his life story. "I guess, I should be better in the way I act. For Hufflpuffe's sake." He said, biting his lip. "Thanks, mate-I-I mean Headmaster Lear- *Short sniff*." He said, letting the wrong word slip for authority.
“It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live.” - Albus percival wulfric brian dumbledore “The ones who love us never really leave us, you
can always find them in here.” - Sirius black
Strength: 6, Agility: 10, Control: 8, Stamina: 6
A Dumbfounded Hufflepuff
Until this year, Solomon was the Care of Magical Creatures Professor and Head of House Hufflepuff before he briefly replaced Professor Sebastián Cazarez as the Deputy Headmaster and eventually Professor Ackerly Blackburn as the Headmaster. His ascent was stagnant for years as the Head of Hufflepuff, he was satisfied there even if it would seem a great many students were not. Donnovan was not the first, nor would he be the last that erroneously believed that there was a such thing as a right House.
"There is nothing wrong or right about any House, Houses are like faces... you don't always get to pick it but somehow it always ends up suiting you. Being good is not just a Hufflepuff thing, it is a people thing." He half smiled, the boy would have no idea the terrible things he had done to keep them alive. To keep them safe. Right and wrong eventually have new meaning when you have people to protect. "But I have a feeling that you will learn your right. Find your courage, your cleverness and your ambition, but yours will be tied to your friends." Donnovan had a few friends, maybe not as many as he hoped for but they were good people. Loyal people. He was not just loyal to them, they were loyal to him as well. That was his super-power. What would his life be like without someone like Ruka Tân? Was it really worth anything?
"Do something fun with a friend," Solomon recommended. "There are so many great places you can explore here in this castle. So many adventures to be had. That is your place. Not in an old man's office arguing with a hat." He looked up at the sorting hat after he said that and mouthed no offense.
"There is nothing wrong or right about any House, Houses are like faces... you don't always get to pick it but somehow it always ends up suiting you. Being good is not just a Hufflepuff thing, it is a people thing." He half smiled, the boy would have no idea the terrible things he had done to keep them alive. To keep them safe. Right and wrong eventually have new meaning when you have people to protect. "But I have a feeling that you will learn your right. Find your courage, your cleverness and your ambition, but yours will be tied to your friends." Donnovan had a few friends, maybe not as many as he hoped for but they were good people. Loyal people. He was not just loyal to them, they were loyal to him as well. That was his super-power. What would his life be like without someone like Ruka Tân? Was it really worth anything?
"Do something fun with a friend," Solomon recommended. "There are so many great places you can explore here in this castle. So many adventures to be had. That is your place. Not in an old man's office arguing with a hat." He looked up at the sorting hat after he said that and mouthed no offense.
There is something about ambition, how it not only propels you but also defines you.