Arriving at Koalingo

[rebecca]

Rebecca walked up the staircase to the office of Lord Emerindyl, who also happened to be the Headmaster. Having just arrived a few moments ago, she decided she should most likely introduce herself. Her hair was pulled into a slightly messy bun held up by chopsticks, and she had turquoise capris on and a white blouse...not exactly professional, but they were her traveling clothes. And she had been traveling.

Nevertheless, she was happy with the way she looked and smiling, she knocked on the door of the office. "Lord Emerindyl? Are you in?" She waited patiently for someone from within to answer...unfortunately for her, she became more nervous the longer it took...

[Headmaster Elwyn Emerindyl]

The office door proceeded to open on its own revealing a well lit office filled with interesting things on little tables here and there with book shelves that climbed to the ceilings. At the back of the office there was a split stair case which lead up to the second level upon which was Professor Emerindyl desk. He was poring over statements and invoices covering the charge of the recent budgets for the school and was not enjoying the tediously important task.

Nevertheless, he was happy to find a distraction walking through the door by the name of “Professor Raeburne I presume?” he said standing and moving to the balcony that overlooked the lower level of his office. He gestured or her to join him, “Unfortunately the house elves misplaced my table and I only found it this morning up here, for the time being, this is where I believe it will stay,” he told her gesturing to a seat in front of his desk,

“You must have travelled far, can I get you something to drink, or perhaps something more substantial in the ay of sustenance?” he offered in a very gracious and politely elegant motive.

[rebecca]

Rebecca watched as the door opened on its own. Startled a bit, for she had been living among muggles for about a year and the magical world was going to take some getting used to, she looked around for the occupant of the office. She caught sight of him on the second level, and stepped in, beginning to walk over.

Smiling, she started up the stairs, and as she did so, she responded. "Indeed, I am Professor Raeburne...Or Rebecca Raeburne, rather. It's nice to meet you finally. How are you today? Well, I hope?" Arriving at the top of the stairs, she continued over to the seat that he had indicated and sunk into it.

Tired as she was, strangely, she wasn't hungry or thirsty. "I have traveled quite far, but, thank you, no. I don't care for either. I just thought I'd pop in and introduce myself before I went skittering around the school. So, here I am." Rebecca looked around and smiled at all the books that surrounded the office. "You have quite a collection of books, I see. An avid reader, I suppose?"

[Headmaster Elwyn Emerindyl]

“A pleasure to meet you Rebecca,” Headmaster Emerindyl smiled at the woman in what was the most genuine of friendly greetings. His school had not had a muggle studies class for some time, it seemed, with every passing generation knowing more and more about muggles before attending Koalingo, that the class had ultimately become redundant. Though with changing times came changing minds, and there seemed to be a vague enough interest to reinstate the class yet again.

”I admit that I have had a startlingly long day, which is definitely saying something when you have had as many as I,” he said not dwelling on the subject of the wrinkles that lined his face. He knew he had the power not to look like this. A simple charm could remove them, though he liked something about appearing older, it carried with it a sense of wisdom. Oh knowledge. “School budgets are a tiresome subject though, so on that note we shall not dwell on my days events, what of yours? How did you travel?”

”Well it is wonderful to see you got past the dragons,” he smiled knowingly. The mountains surrounding the Castle concealed one of the world’s largest natural habitats for dragons. At least he knew it to be the largest colony in the Southern Hemisphere, though it had been so long since he had been abroad and he knew not of the status of other such colonies. “One can warn so many to keep to the roads when travelling to Koalingo, but occasionally does someone not choose to follow suggestions of people who might know more on a subject then they,”

When the Professor commented on his books he looked around at them, this was the second time in a couple of days that someone had mentioned his vast range of rare and original works. Truth be told he had not read many of them more then once, thankfully, even for an aged man, he had a spectacularly photographic memory and great recollection abilities. “They are hear to be read, so of course feel free to do so if you feel curiosity, I do find sometimes some things have only ever been answered once, lucky for me I have the written versions of these answers here,”

[rebecca]

Rebecca grinned. "I traveled remarkably well. No issues along the way, and when you insist on traveling without magic, as I do, that's quite an accomplishment. Well, actually..." She smiled, thinking of how little of an inconvenience she had that it would be hardly worth the time to mention it, still...

"I did run into a bit of trouble when I tried to enter the mountains. The little communities around them tried ever so hard to get me to stay out of them. Some stories about people entering and never returning again. I suppose it's nice to know that they won't be entering the hills for quite some time. Some of the stories are quite convincing." She laughed, remembering the one about a young woman, close to the age of herself, that had disappeared not to long ago. They seemed rather intent that the same would happen to her...which, of course, it would. But not because anything bad had happened.

"Well, I was actually looking forward to viewing some of the dragons, alas, I saw none. I guess that was probably a good thing, because if I had, who is to say I would be here now. But I haven't seen one since my school years, and I remember what an amazing sight they were." Her eyes glazed over a bit, remembering the time where her friends had claimed to have pet the dragons and encouraged her to go up to the one they were studying in Care of Magical Creatures. She had gotten frighteningly close before their Professor had noticed.

"Really? You wouldn't mind if I borrowed one on occasion? I'm a complete addict when it comes to books. I simply cannot get enough of them. To be able to pick from such an extensive collection would be such a privilege!" She smiled again, realizing, perhaps for the first time, that her teaching here would be a marvelous and irreplaceable experience.

[Headmaster Elwyn Emerindyl]

The Headmaster smiled, there was a twinkle in his eye showing that he was somewhat pleased to find his new muggle studies Professor with such a cheery disposition, travelling well did that to people. He did however think there was something she was perhaps holding back, something he understood when she mentioned it.

”Alas, a necessary evil, you see so many muggles feel the need to brave the terror of the mountains to witness the beauty within, however, they know not what they suggest, you see, Rebecca, the colony surrounding Koalingo is one of the worlds largest, and as such we simply cannot move them all should a muggle cross them, likewise, the dragons don’t appreciate our magic interfering with their own, and so we cannot cast charms to ward muggles off, so we have to do it the traditional way,” he sighed at this, he was about to let the new professor in on one of his bigger shames, “I take responsibility of course for the muggles who find the stories too good to pass up,”

“You see,” he said crouching closer to his desk as if he were about to let her in on a great secret, “The dragons never eat the muggles that come into the mountains, never, they keep them for a time, normally this frightens them so much that by the time I come to pay my respects and see the dragons have them captive, they are almost catatonic,” he lowered his eyes to the desk with a solemn expression, “We do what we can, but when they are returned to their muggle families, they are deemed psychotically disabled,”

”Thankfully,” Elwyn said as he climbed out of his chair and started around behind his desk to a great shelf of scrolls almost as old as he was. Surprisingly, none were older then him, but he would never admit that if he were asked. He grabbed one scroll in particular, it was quite large and when he unrolled it it covered the top of his desk, it was a map of the school and the surrounding areas, “-The dragons stay away from the roads, a lot of wizards use the road when travelling here, muggles who try to do so suddenly feel the need to holiday in Perth,” he smiled, “So it is not surprising you didn’t see any, they tend to keep here,” he prodded the map to the valley on the south east of the school, “here” a deep crevasse on the north east, “and here,” a series of caves to the south west, “Of course, if you are interested in seeing the dragons, I will invite you along the next time I go to pay my respects,”

”Of course you may, knowledge is the key to the future, and you cannot claim to be knowledgeable if you do not know everything currently known by everyone else past and present, only then can you look forward into the future,” he smiled at her and rolled the map up again before throwing it over his shoulder. It zoomed in circles behind him for a little while before returning to where it had been on the shelf.

[rebecca]

[[Ack! I'm a bad, bad person who forgot the thread. Dreadfully sorry.]]

Rebecca nodded in understanding. "Well, of course it makes sense that they need to be told stories. It really wouldn't do to have them traipsing up to the castle. It is too bad that some don't heed the warnings, though."

She sighed as the headmaster spoke of the poor muggle dears who wandered into the mountains and were captured by dragons. "The poor things. Some just can't leave things be, can they? It is a shame...but...I suppose it's a lesser of the two evils."

Her eyes brightened as he spoke of allowing her to join him when he went to pay his respects. "Really? I could come along? That would be absolutely marvelous. I'd really appreciate it." She peered at the map he had spread over the table. "The grounds really are extensive, aren't they? It just amazes me how much space one little school can take up. Though, I suppose it's not exactly a little school, is it?"

Again, her eyes sparkled at the thought of borrowing one of his books. "You're absolutely correct. And, sometime, I most certainly would like to borrow one of your books." She smiled, all ready happily content at the school.

[]

[Headmaster Elwyn Emerindyl]

((It does happen, don’t worry about it ^_^ ))

“So anyway,” Professor Emerindyl started as he rubbed his hands together, “You will be teaching muggle studies of course, I hope you are not disheartened that not a great many students have shown interest in the subject, though enough to justify teaching it all the same,” he smiled as he said this. He knew there was a genuine interest wafting through the school as to what could be learned about muggles that most students did not already know. There was already so much mixing of magic and non-magic people prior to the years at Koalingo now, and so most students had lived among muggles anyway.

“Either way your efforts will not go unwarranted, there are enough students interested for us to seek a class for the subject, and you could probably teach them things they didn’t expect to learn…” he said trailing off a little. He believed the statement he had just made, and only hoped the students did find the class educational, “Either way, I am sure it will be an experience,” he continued to smile.

He listened to how surprised she appeared to be regarding the possibility of joining him on one of his trips into the dragon nesting area’s. He had been doing it so long he never thought to wonder whether someone else would find it bewilderingly exciting. He knew it was fascinating, and he enjoyed every trip to the nesting caves, but all the same, it surprised him that he was surprised for her reaction.

“You are most welcome to join me, have you not had interactions with the fine creation that calls itself Dragon?” They believe themselves to be, by and far, the most fantastic of all creatures… and are probably right at that, but you’ll never catch me admitting it to them. Very proud creatures you see, and quick to anger…” he thought he would save the information of him having a dragon named Melinda as a companion of his; the two of them went flying together often.

“Well of course the books have and always shall be here, and you are welcome to utilise them in your stead, in the meantime however I think it is time to end our meeting,” he smiled at her standing up from his desk, “There is so much else to be getting on with,”

((It was a fine post, don’t beat yourself up over it))