New Cook's Arrival... Who do I report to?

Stopping just inside the large wooden door to avoid dripping all over the carpet, Tivona quickly muttered something elaborate and her coat, its lowered hood, her hair, and the drips on the stone floor disappeared as if it hadn't been raining outside. She straightened the nearly full-length black hooded coat she was wearing, then thought better of it and unbuttoned the front to reveal a simple white blouse, a full brown skirt with several ruffled tiers in the bottom third, and a black corset... or it might be a corset if it looked like it had boning. Tucking a silver necklace back into place within her shirt so only the chain was visible, she looked around to get a first impression of the vestibule.

As an entrance hall it was fairly impressive, though in her opinion it could use a bit more light... this was a castle after all. The grand staircase resembled pictures she'd seen before, though the ones she could recall were actually from the Titanic. The fishtank in the middle surprised her, though... what castle had a fishtank in the era this was from? Not that she was an expert on castles, but Tivona felt she could be reasonably sure that this castle was older than her hundred twenty-some years, and this modification must have come much later. It was impressive, nevertheless. Two stories' worth of glass and water was quite a statement, not to mention the fish happily swimming back and forth.

Tivona absentmindedly committed the entrance hall to memory as she looked around, looking for things that stood out to her, especially magical items. She wanted to know if her magic would be repelled by the castle, or if anything would alter the energies she worked with; it wasn't a conscious process these days, having mastered it decades ago, it tended to just happen whenever she saw something new. But the thought that she would have to do some passive scrying rose to draw her attention. Before she did any magic besides the basics she would have to see what else in the castle--obviously she couldn't look at every inch--might work for or against her. Being a school for the magical community, it seemed likely that something or someone would react to her forms of magic.

But a higher priority--she recalled, dragging her focus back to the moment--was to find someone who could tell her what was expected of her. She didn't know where the kitchens were, nor where a bedroom in which she could store her small collection of personal items might be.

The current detrimental weather shrouded the windows with the gray reflections of storm clouds, and only minimal light managed to stretch and grasp at the stone walls settled into the far corners of the spacious vestibule. From a corridor who's arch was nestled mostly hidden in shadow the soft clicking of shoe soles against the old, cold stone floor echoed around the space.There was the sound of a match strike, and one arm lifted a now-lit small brass oil lamp to help illuminate. The form of a man emerged then, stepping confidently towards the new-comer, and coming to pause between her and the massive tank of water in the center of the room.

He was tall, and the blue feathery hair was pulled back in a sporadic ponytail. The castle was chilly, as castles tend to be on occasion, and had on an appropriate, slim charcoal sweater. The man bowed his head politely.

"Miss Danvers, I presume. I am Dean Odqura, welcome to Lillegard Castle. I trust your journey was fair?" His tone was all courtesy and etiquette even as he snuck in a slyly apologetic smile with a tilt of his head. "I might offer to relieve you of your coat, but there seems to be a rampant chill today. Would you prefer to keep it?"

Echoes alerted Tivona to the presence of at least one other, not being able to tell if the paces belonged to one or more once the echo bounced around to orchestrate the approaching man's footsteps until the lamp was lit, revealing the solo man who approached. She took in the blue hair without comment, giving the man a polite nod to cover her quick observation. "Indeed I am," she replied without preamble. "I had a decent trip, though the rain started just about the time I left Glasgow. Tiresome in the extreme, especially with my... peculiar... traveling companion, who refused to budge while it rains." Back on track with only a blink's worth of note given her tangent, she added, "Pleasure to meet you, Dean Odqura."

Her attempt at professional attitude broke down at the smile, which in her opinion showed a fair bit of the character behind the dean's similarly professional exterior. Smiling, she set down the small leather traveling bag in her hand and removed her coat. "Why, thank you. The chill isn't as bad as all that." With the coat off, the revealed ensemble is partly tavern wench, partly old-school servant's drab, both of which clashed with the silvering hair and confident gaze. "Do tell me, should I be reporting to someone other than yourself for duties and the like? I don't wish to waste your valuable time." She does extend the coat slightly, however.


((Sorry for short... lots of craziness.))

"I'm glad the atmosphere doesn't bother you. I'm afraid it's often a little chilly around here."

The dean smiled politely and accepted the coat. The article was folded mindfully over his the arm that held the flame, and he titled his head to motion her to follow.

"You needn't be reporting for duties, as such, Miss Danvers." He took this as his que to begin the 'welcoming' speech detailing her duties. So he turned back the way which he had come from which would enter into the maze of dark stone hallways due north towards the kitchens. He continued to speak in a professional drawl as he led.

"You may come to me if you like. Deans Kale, Rendaz, and Headmistress Everly are also available if you have questions. Although, aside from Everly and myself, I can't promise a strong desire to aid from the others. But I trust you can handle a kitchen better than the lot of us at any rate. Your responsibilities will be to make sure there is food available for the residents of the island for three meals a day. We typically like to prepare meals for students at 6 AM before classes, noon, and 6 PM for supper. Of course, it is of their discretion whether or not these scheduled times are taken advantage of. Feeding anyone who may be asking for meals outside of these times will be completely up to you. Understand, now that the cook position is your duty, us deans have no intention of micro-managing how you run your kitchens on a day-to-day basis."

He glanced at her side-long with a kindly smirk. "Before your arrival, I was typically in charge of securing supplies from the mainland, but you are very welcome to take over this task if you prefer to shop for yourself. Hendry is almost always available for this. You will find, however, that most ingredients are procured right here on the island. I will show you where to find the herb garden when we arrive at the kitchens, and when the weather permits I'm certain I or another volunteer will be available to give you a tour of the grounds. We have an agricultural field and vegetable gardens, as well as livestock."


(( It's fine, don't worry about lengths. xD A good post doesn't have to be a lengthy one. ))

Following the dean at a short distance without regard for the otherwise dim lighting, Tivona listened attentively to every word that drifted back to her. The names of the deans got tucked away in the part of her head that tried to catalogue important people or places, for later attention and added material. So far she had only a brief impression of the blue-haired dean ahead of her, though it was fairly obvious he was not human. She would peg him at mid-twenties... then she chided herself. She looked about sixty or so with the only partially silvered hair, and was twice that, so assuming the man in front of her was in his twenties would probably be rather stupid on her part. She made a mental note to not assume anything about the people she'd meet here, no matter what.

As handling a kitchen was what she came for, she nodded silently in case the dean chanced a glance back at her. Six and twelve were about what she would have assumed for meals anyway, so that was fine with her. The option to deny food to anyone was a new concept for her, and she almost interrupted the dean to question it, but she realized that in a building this size, the number of students might be beyond her capability to feed if they all chose to have meals at times of their choice. Number of residents should be question number one, then, once the dean had finished. Number two was how many of them she could coerce into helping with the duties of harvesting, picking, shopping, and more.

His comment about micro-management earned a sly smile, though she stifled it when he glanced her way. "Thanks for that," she slipped in between his sentences, then fell silent again. Time for running to the mainland for supplies might not be in her schedule if she was to be preparing the amounts of food she was expecting, three times a day. But he was right, she wouldn't mind doing her own shopping. Having other assistants was a good idea, at least, when she'd be overseeing the kitchen. Unsupervised... she wasn't so sure.

"I wouldn't be adverse to shopping, though if I'm your only cook, I don't know if I'll have the time. How many residents am I cooking for? Do any have special dietary needs? Large quantities of food may take up all of my time. An assistant or three might be in order, if any of the students or staff have the inclination and the time."

"I would not find it at all detrimental to continue my hand in the shopping. I can admit to enjoying my visits to the mainland. As for meal preparation, I would say you can expect an average of 50 attendees per meal. As we haven't had an appointed cook in some time, you will find that most residents are perfectly comfortable and accustomed to helping themselves to the main kitchens' amenities and ingredients. Most who do have special diets and will never eat in the kitchens, preferring instead to hunt or forage on their own. If you would like to take on the challenge of preparing several options for meals, that is of your discretion. And in addition, there is the faculty kitchen on the second floor which is available at all times, and each student dormitory building also has its own kitchen which is under jurisdiction of those students." He glanced over at Tivona again and gave a reassuring smile and a dip of his head. "You needn't worry, I am confident you will find the task easier than you are likely anticipating. But if you find assistance in the main kitchen necessary, you are very welcome to seek abetment from volunteers."

At length they had traversed the dimly lit passages of the inner castle and were now approaching their destination. An aristocratic wave of the hand motion towards the door approaching to the left.

"The main kitchens are here. And directly across," he turned to motion towards the door to the right, directly across the hall from the kitchens. "Are your conveniently located private quarters."


(( sorry it's so late! >3> And I have no idea how many students are in the school since I'm sure there are "npc" type students or something... So I just through out a number. xD ))