The Dungeons

Dear Severus,

I am sure you know your own priorities best.

Just in case you find yourself free a little earlier, I will be there from six o'clock. Waiting.

Yours. Always.
Draco

By Rita Skeeter

It appears, oh devoted readers, that a certain wealthy family of the layer below Wizarding Society's upper echelon has welcomed a daughter back into the fold. None other than Pansy Parkinson, sworn to be dead after the second war against He-Who-Was-Not-Named, has reappeared in our midst. The young Miss Parkinson made herself first known to her family only a few weeks ago and, having lost both their children, the elder Parkinsons were of course thrilled at her reappearance.

One wonders, however, just what the errant Miss Parkinson has told her parents of her time away. This humble reporter was in attendance at the lavish party thrown for the young lady just this past weekend, and the gossip swirling around was simply delicious! You heard it here first, dear readers, (unless, of course, you were at said bash), that Miss Parkinson ran away with a Death Eater after the war and lived in flagrante delicto, first in Russia and then in Italy! It does make one ponder, loyal readers, whether Miss Parkinson would have returned to England at all had her dark lover not landed in Azkaban. There are even rumors that certain delicacies were not attended to, and that this forbidden union bore fruit, though of course the Prophet would not deign to speculate upon matters so base.

The story runs front and center on the Prophet's society page

Luna,

All students. Or, more specifically, my students. If you don't mind, let me toss out the following issues and tell me how you would have responded. Because, with the exception of my youngest students and my OWL class, NOTHING appears to be working!

-Talking during class, despite repeated requests for attention and even taking points.
-Not paying attention.
-Not doing readings or essays.
-Talking back in class.
-Fighting in class.
-Walking away in the middle of a lesson.
-Purposely tormenting the nifflers, to the point of my having to halt class and heal open wounds. (I gave detention for that one, and Richards will be doing theoretical work for the next month.)


I just don't get it. All the books I looked at were so upbeat and positive about these new progressive teaching techniques, and granted, they were by Muggles, but it didn't look that difficult to transfer into Care of Magical Creatures! It's like the third and fourth years just don't want to learn, and the NEWT students don't want to learn from me. I never thought teaching would be this hard. Please tell me of someone you know who'd bungled it up this badly, because none of my colleagues seem to be having any trouble, except for Ludo, and he just doesn't pay attention until someone flies a broom into the gargoyles.

Rolf

*soft footsteps and then dropping into the sofa*

Sorry, got caught up tinkering for a bit.