InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "Won-won."

lilu__potter (lilu__potter) wrote in hogwarts_dawn,
@ 2021-04-28 16:55:00

Entry tags:

character: albus dumbledore, character: lily luna potter

RP: Albus & Lilu
Who: Lilu & Albus
When: 28th April, after dinner
Where: The Great Hall, then walking
What: Linguistic nerdery

Lilu had arranged with Albus to meet in the Great Hall after dinner for their first session in linguistics, and had been looking forward to it all day. Even though this Dumbledore was much younger than the man from the all the stories, he was still fascinating to her.

She had learned what she knew of Mermish and Goobledegook from Rolf, who had learned it from his grandfather, who had in turn been friends with Dumbledore. So, in a way, she'd learned fourth-hand from Dumbledore himself and now stood to learn first-hand. Wild. Rolf would have loved it, she thought with just a pang of grief when she remembered--not for the first time--that he was dead.

Her hair had long since defeated the bun she'd sported for the meeting with Remus, and she tucked an errant strand behind her ear as she walked over to where Albus was.

"Hello," she said in what she hoped was passable Goobledegook before switching back to English. "Is now still a good time?"

(Post a new comment)

oddmenttweak
2021-04-28 10:09 pm UTC (link)

Albus was sat at the end of one of the tables, finishing off a second helping of treacle tart and flicking through a few somewhat crumpled pages of parchment. Ever since his chat with Severus, and with the impending arrival of the students, his focus had mainly been on helping to organise lessons and curriculum. He'd thought that that, along with his alchemy and his occasional dip into the Wizengamot, didn't leave much time for much else.

But then Lilu Potter had written to him, and he had changed his mind. Albus enjoyed languages, and had not had much of a chance to flex that particular skill set since arriving here. A few hours here and there would be beneficial, he was sure.

So when the young woman approached, Albus offered her a pleasant smile. "Of course," he agreed, scooping the last bit of dessert into his mouth and rolling up the parchment. Once both were finished, he clambered to his feet, tucking the scroll into his pocket. "Shall we walk? I think my eyes were bigger than my stomach."

(Reply to this) (Thread)

lilu__potter
2021-04-29 01:28 am UTC (link)

Lilu managed to squash her curiosity over the parchment for the time it took Albus to stash it away and stand up. "What were you working on? Anything fun?" She hoped it was fun and that she wasn't being too nosy.

"Oh yes. I'm not very good at sitting still if we're being completely honest. I got so many detentions because of that," she said, grinning at him. "Well. To be honest. I got detentions for lot of reasons, but that was one of the most common."

She waited until he'd tucked the scroll into his pocket fully, then led the way out of the Great Hall. "If it weren't raining I'd suggest we could go down to the lake, see if any mermaids are around for a chat, but maybe it's better to keep it just us for now. And maybe stick to Gobbleydegook since Mermish basically sounds like screaming when you're outside the water." She didn't think the others would appreciate their practice if they spoke it as they were talking the halls.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

oddmenttweak
2021-04-29 09:28 pm UTC (link)

"Oh." Albus absently patted the pocket where his work had vanished to. "It's just some possible lesson plans for when the school reopens. It's proven a challenge, planning for students when you don't know anything about them."

After all, some of the students may have gained some control, whilst others still had magic that went rogue. Different ages, uncertain numbers... it was proving itself more complicated the more they thought of it.

"We better get moving then," he smiled mildly, before gesturing for Lilu to lead the way out of the hall. Albus followed behind, ink stained hands already tucked into his jacket pockets.

The professor gave a low chuckle. "It's not the most melodic," he agreed. They were out in the entrance hall now, and he fell into step beside her. "How long had you been studying languages back at home?"

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

lilu__potter
2021-04-30 12:59 am UTC (link)

"I bet it's especially challenging since most of the kids coming in are going to have zero knowledge of the wizarding world, so you have to start from scratch with all of them." Sure, there had always been a few Muggleborns per year, but nothing like this had ever happened in the entire history of Hogwarts, except at the very beginning. "Oh! Are there any helpful hints in Hogwarts: A History? Or from the Founder's themselves? They must have built a curriculum from scratch too, even thought it was forever ago."

She nodded, and once out of the Great Hall waited for him to move beside her so they could have an easier conversation. "It's absolutely lovely underwater, just not so much on the surface," she said. "Oh, since I was a kid actually. My godmother's husband used to teach me a few things here and there, but it's only in the last year or so that I've really picked up the study while I was working with them on and off." She grinned, only a little bit wistful at the thought of Luna, Rolf, and the twins.

"I wrote about it for my blog, hoping to encourage more cooperation between wizards and other beings. There's too much divide, and that's not just in Britain either." She could go on at length about it, but perhaps that was for another time. "And actually, you came up during our lessons. You were friends with Rolf's grandfather Newt, though I'm not sure of the time-frame there so perhaps you're not friends yet in your time."

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

oddmenttweak
2021-04-30 10:19 pm UTC (link)

"Yes," Albus agreed thoughtfully. "It will be challenging. Usually muggleborn students learn a great deal with their peers, but that won't really be an option here." You couldn't help but wonder what kind of society they would end up building here, with barely any of the old pureblood legacies left. He smiled. "Not that I've found. The books regarding that era tend to be rather... wooly. Professor Snape asked me the same thing. Perhaps a conversation with the sorting hat..."

He trailed off thoughtfully. The hat was supposed to have belonged to the founders, after all. Perhaps it would have some insight.

He listened with some interest to her explanation. Was it his imagination, or did her smile have a tinge of sadness to it? Albus imagined it must be difficult for those from more recent times, knowing the fate that had befallen their community. He supposed it was a small mercy that that many of his friends and colleagues would have passed from more natural causes decades earlier.

"I quite agree. But... forgive me, 'blog'?" He questioned. Albus had not heard the word before - that happened more often than he would like at the moment. He had rather hoped he would feel a little more up to speed by the time the students arrived, but here they were. All he could do was keep questioning.

"I have a Newt Scamander in my second year class?" He suggested, as they turned a corner. He was a Hufflepuff. Bright enough, although he seemed a little distant from his classmates. It was rather disconcerting to think of the twelve year old as being anyone's grandfather.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

lilu__potter
2021-05-01 01:10 am UTC (link)

Lilu couldn't help the groan that escaped when he mentioned the Sorting Hat. "That bloody bastard. All the talk about uniting houses and working together, and it still followed decades of tradition and sorted kids more along family lines rather than anything new, for the most part anyway. It refused to let me be in Slytherin even after I threatened to set it on fire!" No, she wasn't over that and likely never would be. Lily Luna Potter could hold a grudge when it was necessary.

"Oh! It's like...a diary, I guess, except public. I had followers from all over the world, and wrote about my experiences at school, and then later about my travels and the different jobs I tried. I ran it over the journals." And she really wanted to get back to it, sooner than later. "Yes, that would be him! He grew up and became a magizoologist. You'll probably use his book for Care of Magical Creatures. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them."

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

oddmenttweak
2021-05-02 10:08 pm UTC (link)

Albus couldn't bite back his small smile at her rant about the old hat. His own sorting had been a long affair - he could remember the endless muttering in his ear as if it were yesterday. But he had enjoyed being a Gryffindor, and at any rate, had not had strong enough feelings at eleven to request anything of the raggedy old thing.

"Why did you want to be in Slytherin?" He asked, with some interest. He had been under the impression that the traditional distance between the houses had not been as much of an issue for her generation.

Albus nodded as they walked down the corridor. It seemed strange.. wasn't the main point of a diary to keep a private record? But he could see how such things could be useful when it came to exchanging ideas and knowledge, especially between countries. It was certainly quicker than owls and journals, although without the review process.

"Ah," he replied, pleased. "That's good to hear." He worried about young Scamander on occasion. It was good to know that he found his feet. Albus turned a corner, slowing his long strides to match his companion.

"Well, we can only hope my Goobledegook improved somewhat before I started trying to impart knowledge on poor Newt. I'd hate for my bad pronunciation to be passed down the generations."

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

lilu__potter
2021-05-03 10:27 pm UTC (link)

"Because that's where Al was, and he was all alone except for Scorpius. Not that Scorpius isn't wonderful company, but I wanted him to have family with him," she explained. "But the Hat put me in Gryffindor which was fine, but I really wanted Slytherin. I haven't quite gotten over it yet, as you can see."

She could see that he was confused about the concept of a blog, but she thought that was more to do with who he was as a person and not the blog itself. "He spoke of you fondly, and as far as I know your pronunciation was on point," she said with a grin. "Or at least, I never heard differently and since I've been told mine is adequate we'll assume no bad habits were passed down along the way."

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

oddmenttweak
2021-05-04 02:08 pm UTC (link)

"I see," Albus nodded. "That's very good of you." He'd like to think that he'd have done the same for Aberforth, but he couldn't be completely sure. He'd been very different during his school days - he knew now that his siblings had featured much lower in his list of priorities than they should have. Such was the beauty of hindsight, or the cruelty of regret. He couldn't be sure which.

"Well, that's a relief," Albus shot her a small smile, blue eyes creasing at the corners. It only lasted for a moment, however, before his features fell back into their usual thoughtful expression. "Do you have any idea about the work they are hoping to do with the goblins?" he asked, with some curiosity. "I heard something about wands."

Albus had made a promise to himself that he would keep his focus on teaching and stay as far from the 'ministerial' aspects of the castle as he could. However, it was impossible not to overhear some things, with everyone in such close proximity, and he was finding it harder than he expected to keep his distance.

Still, he was here to teach. Or at least learn alongside others. Albus slowed his walking, turning to face Lilu. "So, do you have any idea how you'd like to continue? I suppose exchanging questions and answers, as much as we can, might be a good starting point. At least then we can gauge where things might need some work."

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

lilu__potter
2021-05-05 03:16 am UTC (link)

"Although, if I'd been in Slytherin then Jamie would have been alone, but at least he would have had the cousins. Don't get me wrong, I loved Gryffindor, but in a lot of ways I think the Houses are very outdated. Sure, we didn't have the full rivalry that our grandparents and parents had, but there were definitely still lines between them. Especially Slytherin, which was just so stupid. I really hope it will be different for this generation. They won't have any of the preconceived notions, being mostly Muggleborn, so that will be good." At least, she hoped it would be good.

She grinned back at him, though hers lasted longer than his did. She thought her face was more used to smiling than his was. He had a more reserved, thoughtful air about him. Which made sense with what she knew of him. "I think the idea is to encourage them to move to Britain, make a society of their own here, be treated as equals. If we can get them here, then the money will follow, you know? By offering them wands, we'll show that we're willing to work with them, rather than use them." At least, that's what she thought, but she'd have to ask Remus for more clarification to make sure she was on the right page.

"I think questions and answers is a good idea, and we can keep them simple until we get a rhythm going, then maybe we can move into more natural conversation? I mean, the goal here is to be conversant rather than just responsive, I think."

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

oddmenttweak
2021-05-08 01:50 pm UTC (link)

"Oh?" Albus examined her with some interest. "So you would do away with the houses altogether?" He didn't suppose they would worry about things like that to start with, with so few students. It would likely a generation or two before they reached such numbers again. But the four pillars of the school were it's houses, as far as he had ever known. The idea of Hogwarts without them was almost foreign.

"I see," the Professor said thoughtfully. "Its a solid reasonings. It should buy us some international sway, although it may ruffle a few feathers. And I suppose it won't just be the money that follows. Vampires, hags.. I'm sure there are plenty who would like a wand, if the goblins appear to be getting them." But he was thinking out loud... Albus shook his head slightly, turning his attention back to Lilu with faint interest "But you're to work with that department here?"

It seemed a long jump from this blog business, but it was hard to tell.

He nodded. "That sounds sensible. Shall I begin?" Albus considered. His initial reaction was to ask about family - an easy beginner topic of conversation. But that would doubtless lead to the questions being aimed at him and that was something he was keen to avoid.

"What year are you from?" he asked, switching neatly over to Gobbledegook as they neared a moving staircase.

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

lilu__potter
2021-05-11 12:25 am UTC (link)

Lilu had to think about that for a minute. "Not entirely, at least eventually. When the students do come here, there's only going to be a few of them and they're all going to be in Ravenclaw tower, but I'm assuming you'll sort them according to age rather than personality traits to start." She made air quotes around 'sort'. "And I do think that the idea of houses isn't all bad. You need to have a way to organize classes, foster friendly competition for points and Quidditch, but I don't know. It never seemed very...practical? To sort according to personality or family. What if one year you have twelve very brave kids and none who are cunning? Would you sort them all into Gryffindor and none into Slytherin? And for that matter if it is based solely on character traits, why are the years always even? I can't believe there are 10 brave kids, 10 ambitious kids, 10 smart kids and 10 hard-working kids every single year, so there's already some sort of manipulation going on." She trailed off, knowing she'd been babbling a bit, but she did feel strongly about the Sorting system.

"I've never minded ruffling feathers when it's worth it, and I think this is. It will set Britain apart from the rest of the world, and if we become a bastion for the marginalized I don't think that's a terrible thing. I don't know if anyone has thought further than goblins, but it stands to reason it'll happen eventually." She'd have to remember to mention that to Remus, see what he thought about it. "Yes! I'll be working with Remus. Our first steps, after the goblins, is going to be making contact with the beings right here. The mermaids, the centaurs. Whatever else might have taken up residence in the forest in the last eight years. At least, that's what I think we'll do. We need to form relationships with them, as well as wizards abroad."

She grinned at the shift into Gobbledegook. His accent and pronunciation really were quite good. Better than her own, she thought, but she'd get there. "2028. Just before everything went down. And you?" It was a basic start to a conversation, but it would get the job done.

(Reply to this) (Parent)