To say that Léo was excited about this seminar was a massive, massive understatement. He loved absolutely anything to do with creatures and just DRAGONS. Avery was more worried about his well being than he was. He wouldn't actually mind coming home with a few chars and burns. It would make the experience more authentic.

He looked around, shocked he was the first one there. Then again, he was super early because excitement. He couldn't wait to work with the dragons. He looked around for someone in charge.

Tiberius walked slowly into the room, scanning it with his eyes. His gaze settled on a young man in the room. Giving him a quick once over, Tiberius assumed that he couldn't be older than maybe a second year student. At 26, he knew he was likely to be one of the older students here. Most doing advanced study with dragons had worked with them previously, but his advisor had insisted that if he were going to Romania and anywhere near a dragon colony that he needed some basic training in case his research took him in an unexpected direction.

And so here he was. He shifted his bag up on his shoulder having changed before arriving. His trusty WU Cairo shirt that he always wore for fieldwork was stained and ripped, and still smelled vaguely of the scoffin they'd tracked in Iceland. Not at all appropriate for walking around on the street, but certainly for this.

"Hey," he said with a nod to the younger student, walking up beside him, but still scanning the room for any hint of instruction.

Nigel could not believe he was actually accepted into this and got permission to come from his school. Talk about luck and probably some amusement for Colin. This was perfect he could spend time with friends and got this fun seminar thing. Plus he did not have to wear any formal clothing. Just old clothes. Since he did not care if they got burned. Now where is everyone. He was the third one here it looks like. "What's up Guys"

Not too much of an issue.

He was more focused on wondering if Bunny grew any bigger in the years since he last saw that dragon. She was an pretty awesome dragon.

This was going to be the best assignment EVER. It would be like teaching again and working with REAL dragons and William was TOO EXCITED for it!!!!!

He wanted to appear professional, though, so he stood with his gloved hands clasped loosely behind his back. He was hoping to see some of his formal students today too, maybe even some he had inspired to work with dragons!!! He was equally excited to see the unique hybrid dragons the bank had, and how well they actually got along with each other. Living underground was never the ideal location for a dragon, but he was confident these guys were well taken care of.

This could easily classify as one of the best days in her entire life, despite it hardly starting and them not getting to see the dragons just yet. Just BEING here was enough to have her grinning and beaming and ZOMG DRAGON TRAINING. Sure she got to work in the hatchery back at her University and volunteered there too but those were ickle dragons and as much as she loved them to bits they weren't fully grown, massive and monstrous.

Shame she couldn't get Felix to sneak in with her. Dragons, much like Unicorns, just weren't his thing, though she was beginning to think it might just have been creatures that weren't his thing...

Freya stood by the man that could have been the instructor. (William) He was? Wasn't he? She'd already bothered to and it'd be important to stick with the EXPERTS, which she would one day be, cough.

What a looovely day to deal with dragons! Ms. Harmony Skylark was simply radiating with excitement, having spent some time in the nursery at a Romanian Sanctuary when she was young. Those were the days. And now she had the pleasure of assisting her very knowledgeable dragon team here at Gringotts. It was going to be a exhilarating experience!

Clipboard in hand, the red head wandered over towards William and smiled serenely. She'd written down the game plan so she could assist with directions when needed, though she knew Mr. Adara and Mr. Williamson would have no trouble leading things from there. "Hello hello! Excited?" This question was for the man next to her though her eyes did eventually wander towards the students. "How lovely to have so many young minds eager to learn about dragons!"

...

To say she was excited would be an understatement, yeah? Ella was doing everything in her power not to bounce as she made her way towards the small group of already gathered students, noting that Nigel was among them. Pleasant surprise, this was. She sidled up next to him and smiled, noting the hair still looked good. Well done, Nigel. She'd report this back to Alec. "Long time no see," She said cheerfully. "Hey, I'm Ella." That was for the other students nearby.

And oh my gosh, was that WILLIAMSON? Oh my, okay, act cool. There was inner fangirling happening and an itching feeling that she needed to owl Ness about this immediately but on the outside, the blonde merely smiled. "Hi Professor!" Or former professor. Was she meant to call him Mr. Williamson now? Hm.

But oh, there was another girl standing by him. A woman person with a clipboard. She was important, yeah? Ella gave her a timid smile as well.

Bryce walked in slowly, feeling like bricks of lead were in his shoes. He knows they weren't suppose to bring anything expect their wands, but it felt really weird to not have a bag full of books weighing him down. His hands twitched to hold onto something as he grew closer to the group that had formed at the end so, he shoved his hands into the pockets of his hoodie, gripping his wand. He really, really wanted to do this. If the smallest of magical creatures fascinated him, could you imagine what dragons make him feel like?? Scared, mostly, but also amazed!! The only problem he had with stuff like this was interacting with people. Yeeeah, that wasn't quite his forte.

Bryce finally made it to the group looking like a scared little puppy, "He-Hey, y'all." He sent small smiles to whoever looked his way.

Tancred was more than happy about the seminar for a number of reasons. First, it got him away from his desk back at the Ministry. Being more hands-on was his forte, not piles of paperwork. Next, he was going to be assisting a handful of young WU students examine one of the dragons. Speaking of dragons, they were on the top of his list. The dragon commissioner had never personally seen the dragons at Gringotts, but he was excited to see them nonetheless – especially the newest addition to the bank's dragon lair. Was it old enough to fly yet?

"Hello, Harmony. William," he greeted his colleagues as she joined them in front of the students that were already starting to gather. It certainly was a good thing to see that so many were interested in dragonology. Perhaps he would be able to suggest a few names for his old boss at the Welsh reserve to keep an eye on.

Now, where were those dragons? He was ready!

Charlotte was so excited for this seminar. She really couldnt wait to learn about dragons more. Even though her majors were combat and DADA, the brunette had found herself very interested in the creatures.Especially after Prof. Kasakoff's course back in Moscow. It might have been the need to distract herself from drastic life changes...but in the end it was all good. After all...she was here now right?!

Looking around she spotted that guy leo who wanted to pet the dragons. Maybe they could work together, so she wouldnt be all that alone. Not that she minded but yeah.

Eyes on the professionals Charlotte scanned the three of them. They all looked rather friendly, not the grumpy, want to stab you kind of professionals. Nice. Giving them a smile the 19 year old waited for the seminar to start.

Whoa he did not expect Prof Williamson to be here or Ella for that matter. Though he did recognize two people for uni. Weird and small world. Yet, he has not met Colin Mackenzie. What is up with that. Maybe it will happen. Or he could talk to Alice about it. Now that sounded like a plan. "Fancy seeing you here Ella. Did not take you for a Dragonology major. And I had no idea Williamson was going to be here." That was bringing back memories since it was so long ago.

And on that note

"What's up, Professor Williamson. It has been a while."

Nigel said smiling. It had been years and years.

Léopold looked over as he heard someone else enter the space. Was that a Cairo WU shirt he spotted? When the guy stepped closer he was very proud to be right...and he looked kind of familiar.

He nodded at the man (Tiberius) "'ello. You look familiar. Do you work for zee univerzity?" He pointed to the clearly older man's shirt. He was not one to just forget a face. Léopold nodded as another one joined them (Nigel). Not really much else to say. A simple head nod for a greeting was enough for him.

...and then there were even more people. Good. That meant that they would be starting to and he could play with the dragons. Well, after training of course. Hopefully that bit didn't take tooo long. There was someone who looked like he might be a person in charge (William) and then look at that. Finally a girl (Freya). And then a lady with a clipboard (Harmony). And then more people and another in charge looking person. Did they need to check in? Léo shrugged it off and decided to just wait until he was told to do something.

Léo spotted that girl Charlotte that he'd talked to about the seminar. Might as well stick with a somewhat familiar face. Even though he still swore he knew that one guy from somewhere. "'ello mademoiselle. Fancy seeing you 'ere." Smirk. Obviously he was joking around.

Tiberius nodded to the others as the arrived, but noticed that he was being addressed by the first person who had been there. "Uh, sort of?" he offered by way of nonexplanation. "I'm a graduate assistant, so while I'm doing advanced studies I help out in the department office, sometimes assist a professor with a course, that sort of thing." But he looked familiar? Tiberius looked him over. He was pretty good about remembering student he'd been a teaching assistant for, so that wasn't it.

He shifted his bag on his shoulder. "But today I'm here to learn, same as the rest of you." He nodded to the others who were obviously students, not to the ones he could tell (or hoped) were the instructors. "Are you a student in Cairo?"

There was a plethora of good dragonology students back in Russia, and Mordred wondered why he was picked out of the bunch. It was as if he had extra time for this stuff, seeing that he’s got a full load in university, as well as a lengthy shift back in the Russian Local Dragon Reserve. Upon receiving a copy of the Daily Prophet from Ella, shortly after getting Sophie’s copy, he got the hint that a familiar face will be there. Coolly, and confidently walking in the area, Mordred stayed at the back as he eyed the people who are already there.

Merlin’s beard…is that boy…NIGEL?! When was the last time he saw the kid? Shifting his gaze, his eyes caught sight of a blonde kid. Why was there a child in there? Oh. Oh! The blonde woman was Ella! Merlin’s height. She’s still small, but she did look mature now. Then…there was Williamson. It has been years since he last saw him. Can he still remember the TOOT gang? Those were the good old days. Mordred wondered if the two dragons present would let go of gas as well.

Oh, Merlin forbid.

Charlottes eyes wandered through the room. There was literally no one she knew...no people here that went to Durmstrang. Maybe that was better for her too, she really didnt want to see some of the old faces....Oh well, maybe she'd meet some people worth making friends with. After all they were all interested in dragons here, which was pretty cool and an advantage.

And then the frenchie Leo started speaking to her. With a smile on her face the brunette patted the space next to her. "Oh oui monsieur, such a pleasant surprise. Mind being my company?" He was funny, he would be a good company.

She, of course, had been the FIRST ONE THERE. It was very evident in Lucia's demeanor how excited she was about today, clear from her nose to her high-heeled toes. The old lady had even charmed her pantsuit to look like there were dragon scales adorning it in honor of today.

What? She didn't plan to work with the dragons- Gringotts' manager was wearing what she wanted.

Beside Colin and the group of Ministry officials, Lucia took her place and watched the young ones interact for a while. And after she'd thought the last one had slipped in (one of the two who'd had QUITE fishy recommendations. She was keeping an eye on that geezer), she clapped her hands.

"Hello, everyone!" Could they hear her? This didn't require a Sonorus, yes? "My name is Lucia Clark, and I'm the manager of Gringotts' Wizarding Bank. We have two dragons living in this lair- Bunny, the older one, is a Chinese Fireball and Hebridean Black hybrid. She has begun to act as a mother to the newest addition to Gringotts' array of creatures, little Bandit. He's a cross between a Chinese Fireball and a Ukrainian Ironbelly, and he'll be turning two this January." So he was juuust on the verge of becoming fully mature, though not quite there yet. More in the adolescent stage, really. But he was still their baby.

Glancing at the two men beside the Department Head, she continued. "You'll be working with these dragons today. We'll be splitting you into groups, the younger students being paired with Bandit while the older and more advanced students handle Bunny. Here to supervise and lead the activities from the Department of Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures are William Williamson, senior dragon researcher, and Tancred Adara, dragon commissioner. We also have the pleasure of having their Department Head with us, Miss Harmony Skylark." WHEW. Whole lot of talking going on here. Where was the water?

"And this is Colin Roderick, Assistant Manager of Gringotts. He'll be doing his best to get you lot eaten, I'm sure, so please keep on your toes around him." Hehe. Say hi, Colin. "I hope you find our seminar to be useful in your studies and enjoy yourselves today!"

AND that was all. So Ministry Thing 1 and Ministry Thing 2 could have their turn to blabber now. Take it away, boys.

Chris was excited. He'd been waiting for this even for months. That's how long he'd known about it. Perks of working for a Professor that foolishly trusted him. He smirked to himself at the thought of what good ole Steinburg would say now. He entered and headed to the spot next to Ella. He flashed her a knowing smile then took inventory of who was leading the event.

... wait. Eaten? He shrugged it off. Eaten by a dragon wasn't the worst way to go.


-------------------

Colin waved a general acknowledgement to the small crowd of kiddies. Hopefully these 'trained' ministry guys could handle the bank's dragons. They were a handful. The last thing he needed was an accident involving the ministry.

Not that he thought anything bad was going to happen. That's why he was there.

Except not according to his boss. Nope. He was there to get the children eaten. He hid a chuckle behind a hand. Ahem. He was all business. ... plus they signed waivers. Right? They got those all back?

"Surprise." Ella smiled at Nigel, knowing that she wasn't the first surprising student to end up working with dragons. She was a lot like Kurumi in ways, yeah? And the older girl had gotten into the same field. As for Williamson being surprise number two, Ella nodded. It was a pleasant surprise, of course. Did Nigel see how nice their former professor's hair was?!

Mordred got a smile when he arrived. Hello, hair boy. She knew he'd be here so no surprise there. Then there was Chris and the blonde smiled nervously, still not quite over the recommendation letter thing. Ahem.

And they were starting! Soon. Very soon! EEP!

The twenty year old listened intently to the introductions, wondering if Jake would be joining them at some point during the activities. She wanted to see how Anya-face and baby Keller were so hopefully she'd be able to ask. Hopefully. Also, she wasn't planning on getting eaten by a dragon and she wasn't afraid. Nope. Besides, Alec would be so mad at her if she got eaten! And it seemed she'd be working with the "little" guy, Bandit. This was very exciting news. This way she could hang with Nigel and make sure he didn't get eaten either. More mad Alec wouldn't be good.

...

Harmony smiled happily when she was introduced, producing two peace signs in greeting. The red head was happy to kick things off and now that the students knew which dragon they'd be working with, William and Tancred could get them going. This was so exciting!

"Hello, hello! The Department of Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures is so happy to be working with young minds looking to get into a career involving these magnificent creatures! I assure you that you have two of the very best people here to help you out with your tasks and I know you'll learn so much about the dragons here and yourselves during this opportunity!" She wore a silly smile as she finished, eyes flicking from the kids to her clipboard.

"It says here you're going to start by giving them a bit of excerise, right?" She glanced at Tancred and William, smiling encouragingly. "And I believe everything you need is right here for you so please, let's get started! I think Mr. Adara will be with bandit and the younger students while Mr. Williamson will be partnering with the older students and Bunny."

You're up, gentlemen.

OOC: Everyone, please remember not to RP for the dragons! We've got some RPers who will gladly take care of that part!

In the presence of so many important people in society who could most definitely recognize her talent and land her that big fancy job in Romania, or Wales, or Cairo or something, Freya was finding it juuuuust a little easier to keep composed. The eager look was most definitely there and she WAS smiling at any and everyone to enter the room but she got this. Totally composed. Picture of perfect future Magizoologist. If she never made it big with Unicorns then it'd be dragons so she had to be prepared and even if, she still wanted some work with them at some point so hard to give it 120%.

She might have found herself in one of those little conversations floating around the room if she wasn't so busy waiting to be WOWed. It would happen, obviously, hence her eyes darting from the man to the other then the woman, back to the well dressed old lady, then again to the Department Head was it?

This was all well and fine but BRING ON THE DRAGONS.

O__O

'do the best to get this lot eaten'?!!!!!

O___________O


Bryce nervously chuckled at the "joke" being given, sending shifty eyes at the Colin fellow. If he was to be eaten, he all he asked was that they sent a letter to his ma explaining that he died in the name of learning. That's all he asked. He also gave a couple of questioning brows to the peace signs the lady from the Department of Magical Creatures had flashed. Well, he felt just a bit better knowing she was nice, while the others were...intimidating?

Alright, he was a 21 year-old 3rd year. Was he old compared to some of them? So off to joining Mr. Williamson and Bunny's group, yeah? Bryce, anxiously, waited for the next instructions. DRAGONSSSS.

Tiberius knew exactly which group he'd be in... not that he really was that anxious to get really close to Bunny. But by sheer visual survey, it was clear he was an 'older student.' He stood, hands in pockets, as people gave their welcomes and issued directions.

And if the assistant was going to do his best to get them eaten, well, then Tiberius figured they'd learn a lot about how not to be a dragon's snack.

Well well, look at who all was here. Some of his former students, like Nigel only with long hair now, who got a cheery grin and a, "It sure has," in reply to his greeting. Plus there was Mordred, the boy who was going to grow up to speak dragon! Wow. He was a lot taller. As for Ella.... "You don't have to call me Professor," he chuckled at her. Dang, she had grown up. WAY up. WAY, WAY up. He hardly even recognized her!

"Hey Harmony, Tanc," Willy nodded to his superiors, and to the bank people coming in now. Looked like everyone involved in this project had arrived. Now, to get started... he rubbed his hands together and listened to Lucia and then Harmony give little introductions. Then it was his turn. He motioned his students over with a wave, not that he was going to know most of them by name anyway, and led the way a little closer to Bunny.

Dear, darling ol' Bunny.

"Alright guys, so I don't know you all by name --- yet --- and you might not know each other. So let's start with a few introductions and reminders. I'm William Williamson, but you can just call me Will or Willy or William, whichever catches your fancy. I've worked with dragons since I was YOUR age, mostly in Romania, and I also taught them at Hogwarts." Mordred got a grin there since he was the only kid in Willy's group who would know that. Presumably.

And now for the reminders... "Please don't make any sudden movements or loud noises around the dragon. Avoid the head area and anything spiky or pointy," he pointed toward Bunny's head with her infamous Chinese Fireball face spikes, "And always keep your dragonhide gloves on. If you haven't put them on yet, do so now. Okay. So, first step... after you say who you are... tell me, who here knows how to apply a harness to a dragon?! Anddd why does Bunny need a harness anyway?"

Léo was kind of staring at this point. He was good with faces and knew he had at least seen him once before. A graduate assisstant huh? "Per'aps I saw you when I was on a tour." It would only make sense.

Léopold gave him a slight smile. "Oui. I am a first year creatures student." And at how excited he was about this, he might just switch to dragonology full time.



Léo plopped into the spot she'd patted. It was better than being completely alone here. Even if he hardly knew this girl. Was still better than nothing.

"No problem 'ere. Was just going to ask you the same thing." At least they were on the same page on this one.



Léo looked away from Charlotte as the seminar started. His eyes lit up as the woman (he'd already forgotten her name) talked about the kinds of dragons they had. And they were crossbreeds. Now he was even more excited. Just dragons.

Then there was a pretty red headed woman speaking. Now that he knew where he was going, he just wanted to go see the dragon. Also the fact that he was in the group with the juvenile meant it would be more likely to be able to pet it. Maybe even scratch it's belly. Avery would kill him if she knew what he was thinking. He had no intentions of getting eaten...but his current thoughts might lead him down that route.

Léo turned to Charlotte, knowing that they would be in the same group. "Let's go then." He got up without even waiting. Yes he was excited.

He walked over to where Mr. Adara was and gave him the most excited, dopiest grin...mainly because it was permanently stuck on his face at this point. "Bonjour monsieur. Léopold Bouchard but you can call me Léo." He felt an introduction was necessary.

Mordred took the time to look and memorize the names of the higher ups inside the area, seeing that there was a huge chance that he will be working with them soon. Getting in the Ministry would be a tough challenge for the young man, but he was determined to land a position in the Creatures Department to work alongside his former professor, William Williamson.

Mordred returned William’s grin with his own, and added a nod to acknowledge his mini-speech. Yep, he was one of those students who was lucky enough to be under his tutelage during his short stint at Hogwarts. It was a short one, but it had a very strong impact on the young man. Who would have thought that he’d pursue Dragonology over being an Auror?

The former Slytherin retrieved his own dragonhide gloves and donned it as William proceeded with some friendly reminders. Tucking his hands behind him, Mordred listened to his former professor as he asked questions. Well, would you look at that? It feels like he’s back in Hogwarts, only this time, he’s with overgrown students. “Mordred Mordaunt.” Future dragonlord, thank you. “One can use a Placement Charm to apply the dragon’s harness around its body,” though they do have to work as a group to do that, yeah? “I’m not sure though, as to why a particular dragon, Bunny, would need a harness, but in general, it is used by dragonkeepers to ride on the dragon's back and safely observe the beast while in flight.” Mordred wasn’t sure if it’s common practice in other reserves to ride a dragon, but it is being done in Russia. Not as much as he wants to, though.

Tiberius smiled. "That's probably it," he said with a nod. "I won't be on campus this fall, but should be back in the spring. Perhaps I'll see you around."

But now they were getting instructions, so with quick nod of the head, Tiberius moved over toward the group that would work with Bunny.



Tiberius pulled his gloves from his back pocket and slipped them on quickly. He watched particularly carefully how the man offered direction and instruction. Tiberius had been told he'd be expected to teach a section when he returned to Cairo, and so he was making mental notes about teaching style in addition to anything that would help him survive his fieldwork. So the man had taught at Hogwarts... interesting. It had clearly been after he'd left.

So far, the instructions had seemed similar to those Tiberius had observed with most creatures of a more dangerous persuasion. Quiet. Slow.

"Tiberius Pryce," he offered by way of introduction. "Advanced studies at Cairo, though first time with dragons" he added, providing some context to why someone his age was at what was clearly an introductory seminar.

But when it came to the question, Tiberius kept silent. It was more important for the others to interact. He would observe.