---

---

---

• 
  
  The last weeks of Hogwarts term, students and staff alike have been preoccupied with big mid-year projects and examinations.  A Slytherin researches her history assignment, first years hit the books, and studying takes a backseat to cross-continental romance.  But a Hufflepuff's study session in the library unearths something prophetic...
  
  But preparations for the fantastic Yule Ball can't be ignored!  Slytherin sisters prepare themselves like warriors before a battle, and in Hufflepuff House, two lads unlock the mystery of a Yule Date. Student and professor alike pitch in to stitch in, as two unlikely friends attempt to make sense of life as a teenage witch  With everything going on, one student seeks solace from the counselor, and yet another student deals with the stress by providing a bit of much needed theatrics. 
  
  The magical community finally comes together to celebrate at the Yule Ball in the Great Hall!  Between the energetic first years making their own brand of fun and the adults hanging out, the Ball’s been a huge success! Is love in the air on this chilly winter night, or are we kissing for the academic aspect? The School Champions open the ball with an elegant waltz, and Headmistress McGonagall announces the results of the second task. A successful graduate returns to seek approval from her retired headmaster while another retired Hogwarts head enjoys an evening with his date and family.
  
  Even when term ends, the work is not done; the Headmistress welcomes a new Herbology professor in from his travels, and other recent hires both foreign and familiar begin to prepare for the coming semester.
  
  

• 
  
  The holidays are never slow at the Ministry of Magic! A routine Department of Mysteries meeting is interrupted by an escape lobalug, a routine werewolf hunt goes bad, and the Department of Magical Catastrophes is left cleaning up when a sneezing fit takes a turn for the worse.  The Healers at St. Mungo's scurry to deal with the mess, but when Muggles are involved, nothing is ever simple.
  
  Admete Brown is promoted to Department Head in late December, although not all of her staff feels in the loop.  Elsewhere in the Ministry, Sophie Flickwick plays Christmas Elf when she pays a surprise visit to a grumpy Kurby Bagnold, two young Unspeakables make holiday plans together, and werewolves Hannah Bombay and Knox Greyfriar try to appeal their recent conviction.
  
  The bad luck continues elsewhere in the magical world, as kidnappings and other suspicious activity are on the rise! A bad day and an out-of-control marital spat lead to a surprising murder in Oulton Broad, although Aurors Roh and Callen are hot on the trail to catch the killer.  Charlie Robards is kidnapped by a longtime nemesis of his family, who surely has nefarious plans for the young man's future.  Theodora Kingstreet's revenge against Devlin Matthews kicks into action when Lucy Matthews and Jason Marren are kidnapped, and Dreogan Eleor's longtime visions finally came to fruition when he was kidnapped from his home at the end of November.  Now, with the Head of the newly-created Muggle Affairs Office missing, his friends and family are left to pick up the pieces as they celebrate the holidays.
  
  But at a few folks manage to make time for friends and family during the holidays.  In Oulton Broad, Chloe Harris brings Heinrich Faust home to meet her family, and sisters Caitlyn McGee and Cynthia Hunter discuss Caitlyn's rocky relationship with her recently-turned werewolf daughter Lexi.  Professor Storm, Professor Trishna, and their respective families and guests get together on Christmas Eve. Isambard Roth and Bethan Ellis kick off an unlikely friendship, Chaz Lawrence and Nightingale Kesali spend time together and Jacoba Schlagenweit and Isaac Frasier get a little closer as well.  And at least everyone can come together to celebrate at a New Year's Eve party at St. Mungo's, where hostesses Liadán Ó Móráin and Dolly St. James and a bachelor/bachelorette auction ensure that 2010 is rung in in style.
  
  

Hogwarts Plots:
Christmas Day At Hogwarts - Planning for those left behind
Attention Ravenclaw Girls! - Get involved in some first year shenanigans
That Most Awkward Talk about the Birds and the Bees - Sex Ed comes to Hogwarts!
New Year, New Theater - New club president Ligeia Canterbury plans to resurrect the Hogwarts Players
Flying Class Brainstorming - Suggest ideas for Madam Hooch's lessons for the new term
Charms Lessons 2010 - Let Lily know what you'd like to see in Professor Kesali's upcoming classes
Defense Lesson Plotting for the 2010 Term - Help plan Professor Storm's future classes

Adult World Plots:
Improper Use of Magic Office - Help Neon develop this sub-department of Magical Law Enforcement
Chaos in the DoM - A late-night escape from the Department of Mysteries sparks trouble in London
Trainee Case (And Some Questions) - Get involved in a new MLE case for Auror trainees
A Winter's Tale - A night at the opera goes downhill quickly when the drama isn't confined to the stage
Sport of the Least Noble Kind - The second part of the werewolf fighting ring will soon begin
Cirque de la Lune - A mysterious circus comes to town
Putting him in his place - Are you after Mark Hunter?
Wanted: Criminals - The Skinner siblings arrive on the scene!
Quidditch Plotting - James Forrester brings scandal to the magical world of sports

---

The Second Task of the tournament ended with a flourish, and the Yule Ball is in full swing!  A huge thanks to the GMing team of Will and Nuri, as well as all of the participating writers, for making the Second Task a success.  The final scores were announced at the start of the Yule Ball, and though Durmstrang remains in the lead, the Tetrawizard Tournament isn't over yet!

The Third Task will take place mid to late January, so interested parties should brush up on your most precious potions, special spells, and sign up!  OOC sign-ups will be open until February 13, and the Champions will be selected in-character on January 3 at the Hogwarts returning feast.  Any writers with eligible students are welcome to sign up and join in the fun!

---

• 
  
  
  Happy Anniversary, Absit Omen!
  
  Absit Omen turned four years old on January 20!  This year, our community's anniversary kicked off two weeks of fun and revelry.  The celebration has officially ended, but you can still join in the party as we celebrate four wonderful years at Absit Omen!
  
  
  • Share the story of how you came to be a member at Absit Omen: link
    
  • Recount some of your Best Moments of AO! link
    
  • Contribute to the AO Radio Show! link
    
  • Try and stump your friends by creating AO quizzes and puzzles! Make'm and take'm! link
    
  • Vote in the poll for the new AO Logo! link
    
    
    
  Join the Logo Committee
  
  As part of the Anniversary fun, we are looking to create an original logo for Absit Omen.  If you have artistic inclinations and would like to join the Logo Committee that will be drafting a design, send a PM to Niobe Thursby.
  
  
  
  Dobby Swap: A success!
  
  For the fourth year in a row, the creative talents of the Absit Omen writers were on full display during our annual holiday Dobby Swap!  Yet again, everyone's artistic and thoughtful gifts were a pleasure to behold.  Hip hip hooray!
  
  A huge thank you to Elle, who put in time and energy to organize the event and deliver everyone's presents.  You are Dobby's favorite holiday elf!
  
  
  
  Staff Updates
  
  It's been great to have Mel and Kelly join the curator team, and we've been working hard behind the scenes to make sure that everything will run smoothly. Part of the changes include levelling out the Curator team and dividing up or shifting the management of some regular duties. This means there will no longer be a 'Head Curator' but just a team of Curators: Sarah, Sparky, Kelly, Mel and Kit.  You will find an updated list of our responsibilities on the Staff Directory.
  
  The Absit Omen staff isn't done growing!  Thank you to everyone who responded to our call for new Absit Omen Ambassadors and C-Box Moderators!  Will, Alice, Michael, Josh, Rayven, and Socks are our Winter Ambassadorial team, and Lily, Luke, Amara, Rayven, and Michael will be our upcoming C-Box Mods. 
  
  A big thank you to Zira and Liv, our outgoing C-Box Mods!
  
  If you'd still like to help out behind the scenes at Absit Omen, we'd love to have you!  We are full up on C-Box help for the near future, but we are happy to take on more Ambassadors if anyone would still like to lend a hand.  We also have some new postings for Aides who assist with record keeping.  Check out the Staff Openings and Volunteer Opportunities page to see all current postings.
  
  To see the entire Absit Omen staff team, visit the Staff Directory.
  
  
  
  Rules Redux: It's Coming!
  
  The Curating team has also been working tirelessly behind the scenes to prepare an update of Absit Omen's Code of Conduct and information pages.  As AO has grown, we've found that our rules have grown with us -- to the point where they were no longer as efficient or as simple as they could be.  Over the past few months, we've been taking a look at them page by page and devising ways to make them simpler to understand and navigate, both for longtime members and for new friends who might find us in the future.
  
  We are finally ready to roll out the revised documentation, so you should see an announcement about them in the next few weeks.  Don't worry!  There will be no new rules or restrictions; we are simply reorganizing and simplifying everything that is already in place.  Once the Rules Redux goes out, we will consider it a working document (and not totally finalized), so we will be asking for feedback from the community.  Keep your eye out. 
  
  
  
  Wiki Updates: NPCs and AO Places!
  
  The NPC Directory has successfully completed its move to the AO Lexicon!  A huge thank you to Armiece and Cody, who diligently helped in the transition.  You can now view the full list of NPCs on the wiki page.  The old NPC Registry will soon be officially retired.  Please feel free to double-check the wiki pages for any of your NPCs and update information if needed.
  
  The next wiki project will be moving over all of the information for places within Absit Omen to the wiki page.  Does your character have a residence or business that you have created or described in a post?  Help out by adding it to the wiki!
  
  If you don't yet have an account for the wiki, get in touch with a preferred username and email address. An account will be created for you and an activation email sent.
  
  
  
  Signatures Enchanted!
  
  Following a c-box brainstorm by Cody and Tor, we now have installed a new SMF mod called Advanced Signatures!  This means:
  
  • Each account can have up to 5 signatures!
  • You can select which signature (or no signature!) you'd like to display in posts and PMs.  (Click on "Attachments and Other Options")
  • We can now show/hide signatures at the board level.
  
  The only drawback is that we lost everyone's current signature in the process.  We're so sorry! We encourage you to share your favourite signature codes here.
  
  Remember, the total area of your entire signature, including both pictures and text, cannot exceed 600 x 200 pixels. 
  
  
  
  New Avatar Option
  
  We have added a new option for metamorphs and similar characters who adopt a regular second face as they go about their lives. Nuri sent in a member query to ask, and in response we have amended the Avatar Registry rules.
  
  Characters who regularly adopt an alternate appearance can claim a secondary play-by to go along with their primary face claim.  However, this additional claim is given secondary status, which means that it can be claimed by a primary character at any time.  If you would like to claim a secondary play-by at any time, please post to the Avatar Registry and note that it is the character's second face claim.
  
  Also a big thank you to everyone who resubmitted their avatar claim, and to Mai for restoring the list to its glory!
  
  
  
  2010 Hogwarts Calendar
  
  With our jump to January 2010, the start of the new year is upon us!  The Hogwarts School Calendar has been updated to include the spring term.  Visit it to learn all about upcoming Hogsmeade weekends, Quidditch matches, and other fun school events!
  
  If you have an idea for a major event to add to the Hogwarts calendar, please start a plotting thread or contact a Curator.
  
  
  
  January 2010 Weather Forecasts for London and Hogwarts
  
  London Forecast for January 2010
  
  The first week of the year brings temperatures around freezing but there will be several rare sunny winter days.  Rain returns for the second week of January and skies will remain grey and cloudy through most of the rest of the month.  A warming trend starts around January 21^st bringing much milder temperatures but begin to drop back towards freezing as January moves into February.
  
  
  • Best Sunny Days: January 1^st, 2^nd, 4^th and 30^th. 
  • Watch for snow: January 5^th, 6^th and 13^th.
  
  
  Hogsmeade & Hogwarts Forecast for January 2010
  
  Clouds and snow cover Hogwarts and Hogsmeade for the first week but rising temperatures bring rain staring January 12^th.  Temperatures will be mild, with intermittent sun breaks from the 17th through the 22^nd with rain returning for the last week of January.  Temperatures start to dip back down towards freezing as January moves into February - will Hogwarts see more snow before winter is done?
  
  
  • Best Sunny Days: January 11^th, 18^th, 19^th, and 25^th
  • Watch for snow: January 1^st, 2^nd, 4^th, 5^th and 9^th
  
  Mai has updated the wiki to include the forecast for January 2010!  Check the Almanac for daily forecast details!
  
  
  
  Major Roles Classified Ads
  
  The following are Level II Major Roles and have special requirements. To see more, please visit the page on Major Roles and as appropriate, fill out an application or title change
  
  Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is looking for immediate hires in the following positions:
  
  • Divination Professor
  • Arithmancy Professor
  • Head of Beauxbatons
  
  The Ministry of Magic has openings in the following areas:
  
  • Head of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures
  • Head of the Department of Magical Transportation
  • Head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports
  
  St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Illness and Maladies is looking for a Head Healer of the hospital.  (This is a new addition to Major Roles!)
  
  Are you a talented student in good standing with decent marks? Do you enjoy keeping order and following the rules? Then you may be interested in becoming a Hogwarts Prefect! The following positions in student leadership are available:
  
  • Head Girl
  • All 7th Year Prefects
  • Male Ravenclaw 6th Year Prefect
  
  Student leadership positions are a Level III Major Role and are subject to special requirements. For more information on Major Roles, please visit the page on Major Roles
  
  If interested in any of the open positions, submit an application today! Applications will be considered on a first come basis.
  
  

---