[center][sup][h1][color=black]HAWTHORNE ACADEMY[/color]
[color=555151] HAWTHORNE ACADEMY[/color][/h1]
[b]The Assembly Hall, September 2024[/b]
Start of Term[/sup]

[img]https://i.ibb.co/hmvg3KZ/hall.gif[/img]

[url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AOIVPqDm06g]♫[/url]
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[color=gray]There was a dark tempest raging in the skies above Hawthorne Academy. The skies, always kept clouded from sunlight to accommodate their vampiric students, were darker than usual - and only the soft glow of orange and yellow from the windows of Hawthorne provided light. Even the stars above had gone quiet. The downpour of rain flogged against the walls and lashed the windows, even the ancient magic woven into the mortar and tempered into the glass unable to drown the noise entirely. Thunder rumbled menacingly in the clouds above, occasionally striking the highest towers of the Academy with tempestuous wrath. It made for a heavy backdrop for the arrival of students in what was already a year more anticipated than most. The increasing disappearances and thefts of ancient artifacts had become widely discussed news, making the front page for every issue of the ‘Daily Oracle’ (the major source of supernatural news) for a month at least. There has been a new theory every day, but so far, no answers.

Noon was fast approaching as the students gathered within the assembly hall for their annual induction. The morning had been left free for the students to gradually arrive and deposit their things with the arrivals office, as well as to find their friends for their long-awaited reunions. The hall itself was dramatically large, with lit fireplaces lining the walls on either side, and floating candelabras above, providing light and some much needed warmth to many of the drenched students. The pleasant hum of orchestral music subtly filled the air, made from magic no-doubt. At the front of the hall sat the professors, all behind one large table of dark oak, with a podium for the Headmaster before it. There was the newest arrival, potions professor Ophelia Evergreen, who had managed already to attract rumors that she and professor Eller were together. The closeness with which they were sat did little to alleviate this. Gideon, the artefacts professor, and his colleague the professor of history, Viktor, were engaged in lively discussion - while Silas de Lavigne, an ancient vampire of tremendous reputation, sat silently at the end of the table. Unusually, a few Seekers could even be spotted about the hall in various spots, distinguishable by their large leather overcoats with the collars always worn up. Seekers were the enforcement arm of the Academies, responsible for tracking rogue supernaturals - but they were rarely seen by the students. Their appearance was a mark that [i]something[/i] was amiss, even if none knew truly what.

Students continued to file into the hall. Friends spotted one another, and groups formed as they always did. Excitable chatter filled the hall. For many, the disagreeable weather and tense circumstances had already been forgotten - they were home, and with the friends they had made over their years at Hawthorne. Among the crowds, the more uncertain first years always stood out.

Suddenly, the music was silenced and the mumble of chatter began to fade expectantly as the Headmaster, Lucius Lightwood, stepped to his podium. Lightwood had been Headmaster for no less than a decade, with his tenure marked by many steps to modernise the Academy. The controversial introduction of wifi nine years ago, for example, has made him particularly popular with the students. He was a man who wore an easy smile and relaxed demeanor, always seen wearing well-tailored checkered suits. He set his hands on either side of the podium, his voice naturally amplified by the hall.

[color=white]“Welcome, welcome. It is so good to see you all here, undertaking another year of your studies or - for some - beginning what I hope will be the most memorable six years of your lives. At Hawthorne, we are not solely here to learn the academics. We are here also, and perhaps most importantly, to learn who we are. To live and collaborate with one another, to make bonds of unbreakable friendship. Remember this, and your time here will be of great value no matter your exam results.

Now, I have a few start of year notices before I let you all find your dormitories for this year.

First, to all of our first years, know that the Wyrmwood Forest is strictly forbidden to [i]all[/i] students. I have also been asked by your Deputy Headmistress, Ms. Gray, to remind you all that the third to ninth sections on the fourth floor of our library, remain restricted to all without oversight of a professor.

I would also like you to know that Professor Bloom has decided to retire, to spend more time with her family. I am very glad though, to introduce your new potions professor. Please join me in welcoming like your newest Professor of Potions, Ms. Ophelia Evergreen.”[/color]

He paused to allow for applause then as Ophelia rose temporarily from her seat. Pressing round spectacles up his nose, he continued.

[color=white]“And as a final note, I wish to assure all of you of the safety you have here at Hawthorne Academy. There is perhaps no safer place in the world.”[/color]

He let that linger, though evidently avoided delving too far into the specifics that everybody already knew about. The Daily Oracle had been reporting the disappearances for the entirety of Summer, and speculating wild theories - a cult seeking to destroy supernaturals? A new type of supernatural beast? 

[color=white]“Now, you will find your dormitories listed outside this hall. Your things have already been moved for you. Go, settle in, meet your friends and make new ones. I wish you all the very best of luck for this year.”[/color]

With that the doors of the assembly hall flung open, allowing students to file out and find their new dormitories. They would have to settle in quickly, with classes beginning only the very next day. [b]The school year had begun[/b].[/color]