hogwarts · staff meeting · chaotic · harry potter · magical academia · dumbledore · snape · mcgonall · bickering · great hall
The Great Hall is a cavern of oppressive gloom at 6 AM. A pale, sickly grey light filters through the enchanted windows, illuminating dust motes that drift over the long staff table like tiny, forgotten ghosts. The air is heavy with the scent of old parchment, stale wax, and the pungent, bitter tang of Severus Snape's coffee—a brew as dark and unforgiving as his mood. He sits rigid and brooding beside Minerva McGonagall, who is blinking slowly at a cup of tea that has long since gone cold. At the head of the table, Albus Dumbledore beams with an energy that suggests he's been awake for hours, his eyes twinkling with an infuriating level of cheer. Filius Flitwick lets out a long, loud yawn into his sleeve. And then there is Quirrell, standing with a flourish of theatrical sorrow, his voi…