Literacy is truly outrageous! [Jem, the Master, and open to whomever]

[glamhologram.livejournal.com]

Jem was never happy without a cause. Weirdly enough, in the wizarding world there were no fashion moguls ready to throw charity galas on their yachts, or if there were, they hadn't been clamoring for an appearance by Jem as the headliner. Nor were there any mysterious millionaires itching to hold a contest for the best music video, with a mansion as first prize (perfect for housing a lot of orphans). Why didn't life at Hogwarts match up to Jerrica Benton's ordinary life? Pumpkin tarts and Alohomora! had their interesting points, but without some cause to champion, Jerrica/Jem had begun to slip into the proverbial doldrums.

Her house-elf backing band kept asking whether she wanted anything. A mopey Jem couldn't possibly be right. She needed to get back to her bubbly, effervescent self. Without Rio or her girls to cheer her up, what could she do?

The breakthrough came when one of the elves offered to bring her a book from the library. Suddenly, Jem remembered.

There are people in the world who don't know how to read!

Some of them might even be at Hogwarts?

Literacy was a favorite cause of Jem's. She'd already held a carnival in Philadelphia to promote adult reading, and [SPOILER ALERT FOR '80s CARTOON] even convinced one of the Misfits to give reading a try!

But how to champion literacy in a place without carnivals, Philadelphia, or the Misfits?

In the end, Jem wound up in the corridor outside the Great Hall, sitting at a table draped in all the colors of the eight Hogwarts Houses, with a big stack of See Spot Run-style primers, and a huge sparkling banner hung overhead:

Reading is Rad!

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[he-was-born.livejournal.com]

It was the huge sparkling banner which attracted Jherek's notice, along with the presence of Jem beneath it. He couldn't read said banner, as he was a poster child for Jem's effort. The basic theory behind reading had always escaped him, and, his time at Hogwarts hadn't really helped. Things that had to be read were somehow translated into something that made inexplicable sense by the school's translation spell, but, anything optional remained a collection of funny-looking symbols.

Curious, Jherek made his way towards the table. He was clad in a pair of body-hugging pajama jeans, not the original pair he'd gotten for Xmas from the Sorting Hat, but one of several identical pairs he'd made himself, in a variety of colors. Today, his were bright purple, and, he wore a poofy red shirt and white, glittery cravat to go with the ensemble. Blue suede shoes were on his feet, and his hair had been tinted to match- atop his locks was a dashing purple and red top hat, rather oversized and also sparkly. He strode across the Great Hall towards Jem, happily singing about wanting to marry a lighthouse keeper. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4TJNtleKBE)

[glamhologram.livejournal.com]

As ever, Jherek's fashion sense meets with Jem's hearty approval. His song isn't one she knows, but she bets her friend Dance could come up with some killer choreography for it.

"Jherek!" She stands up and waves both arms at him, excited, as though she's trying to communicate in semaphore. As it happens, she isn't. She's merely given to exaggerated gestures.

[he-was-born.livejournal.com]

"Siren off the starboard bow! Jem ahoy!" Jherek exclaimed, beaming happily. He pointed at the sparkling banner, commenting, "Your decor is splendid in its sparkling scintillation! What's all this about?" He picked up one of the primers and began paging through it. "Did you make these? Delightful! It is a 'book', yes? There's a whole room full of these off. . .oh, some dreary hallway. This one's a lot more colourful. It's much better than the others I've seen."