Ella walked into the Barnyard and gave Professor Williamson an odd look. He seemed a bit
out of it. The first year sincerely hoped things were okay with him but chalked it up to him having a long term or something.
"Hi Professor!" She greeted happily, then went over to find a seat. Once seated, she waited for instructions, eager to get going.
The young badger listened carefully as Professor Williamson started explaining the task for the final. Pygmy Puffs! They were working with Pygmy Puffs?! Ella felt a wide smile appear on her face and glanced over at the pen, wondering which puff she would pick. She also felt kind of bad, working with another puff besides Barny. She hoped the little guy wouldn't be jealous! Next the first year's attention fell on the table full of foods, suddenly feeling like it would be a struggle to not just inhale the sweets herself! She already had her eyes on a plate of cookies but tried to regain her composure. Pygmy puffs had to eat too! When the Professor had finished explaining the essay portion of the final and dismissed them, Ella hopped up and first brought some parchment and an anti-cheating quill back to her desk. That way she would be ready when it came time to write. Then she headed for the puff pen, excited to meet a new little friend.
Approaching the pen, Ella eyed the puffs curiously, tilting her head to the side to get a better look. For some reason, this bunch didn't seem as impressive as the first she had been exposed to, maybe cause Barnabus was no longer there. Hmph. Continuing her search, Ella's wide eyes fell on a extremely fluffy bright green pygmy puff. The puff's size and attributes led Ella to belive it was a male and she had had great success with Barny so it seemed like a good choice.
"Well hello there, you look like you're in need of a friend." Ella said to the puff, picking it up gently and placing it in the palm of her hand.
"I'm Ella and you're...well I guess I need a name for you huh?" But what kind of name did this green puff deserve? Something as bright and attention grabbing as it was, that's for sure.
"How about Green Machine? That's pretty awesome and it makes you sound tough. You like that?" The first year lightly tickeled the puff with her finger, causing it to squeak loudly.
"I'll take that as a yes...Now lets go see what you eat!"
With Green Machine on her shoulder, Ella approached the table that was filled with food and let her eyes wander. There was a lot to choose from and Ella wanted to get a good variety. She settled on purple grapes, a piece of bread, and a brownie and brought the items back to her seat, placing Green Machine down next to the food.
"Alright, lets try a grape first." The first year picked up the grape and placed it directly in front of the green puff, watching it closely. The puff narrowed its eyes, gave the grape a serious look, and sent its tongue flying towards the food and bringing the grape to its mouth.
"Whoa! That was like a frog move or something!" Like a frog catching a fly!
SQUEAKKK SQUEAKKK! "So you liked that, huh? That's great!" Next came the bread which the first year placed in front of Green Machine, watching his reaction. This time, the puff rolled towards the bread but no tongue came out to try it.
SQUEAK. "What's the matter, Green Machine? You don't eat bread?" Which was weird cause Ella
loved bread...all food actually.
"Okay, well here, I'll take this and you try some brownie instead." At the mere sight of the chocolatey treat, the puff started to go crazy.
SQUEAKKK SQUEAKKK SQUEAKK! "Whoa! Settle down now, it's coming." Ella placed the brownie in front of the puff and watched in shock as the entire thing was devoured by the creature. O__O
"Uh Green Machine...you really are a machine! An eating machine, that is." Apparently brownies were on the
like list.
"Alright, well since you like brownies so much, I'll grab you an extra if you promise to eat quietly, I have some stuff to write...that means no monkeying around." With that, Ella grabbed an extra brownie for the little guy and pulled her parchment and no cheating quill forward.
SPOILER!!: Essay Portion
1. When I went over to the pygmy puff pen, I knew that I wanted to work with a male pygmy puff. In a previous lesson, I had the pleasure of working with a male and thought it might bring me the same kind of good experience to work with one this time. In order to ensure I got a male, there were several traits I looked for. First, I looked for the brighter puffs, because males are brighter in color. Then, I looked for the fluffiness of the puffs as males are usually fluffier. Lastly, I looked for the general size of the puffs, knowing males are usually smaller. I settled on a small, extremely bright green, fluffy puff, which I named Green Machine.
For the food portion of the pygmy puff practical, I settled on three different types of food. First, purple grapes, which Green Machine seemed to enjoy. When I put a grape in front of the little guy, he eyed it suspiciously, making me think he wouldn't eat it. Then, he surprised me by attacking the fruit with his tongue and eating the entire thing! He then starting to squeak loudly. Next, I put bread in front of Green Machine. He was less than enthused by this choice. He didn't even bother trying the bread and instead squeaked once, with no energy behind the noise. I guess Green Machine isn't big on carbs or something. Lastly, I placed a brownie in front of Green Machine. This caused the puff to start squeaking loudly, even before tasting it! Maybe he could smell the chocolate. When he got the chance, he ate the entire brownie so quickly! Actually I'm sure the poor creature has a belly ache now. His enthusiasm, plus the speed with which he ate the brownie, made me believe he liked it.
2. During the warmer months, I find myself wanting to swim a lot, a great way too cool off. Swimming in the black lake, however, can sometimes be dangerous. If I were to go swimming in the lake, I'd probably play games with my mates, one of which is called Marco Polo. In this game, one person has to find the others with their eyes closed. Sometimes during this game, I would dive down under water to escape the grasp of the seeker. This is when a group of grindylows would have the oppertunity to surround me, trying to drag me down to the bottom of the lake. In the situation, I would first try not to panic, this would only excite the grindylows and make escaping next to impossible. Next, I would locate my wand and hold it out, ready to act. Then, I would use the relashio spell, a spell which causes whatever is grabbing you to release its grip. This spell is perfect for an encounter with grindylows as their grasp is what pulls you down. Above all, I would try and keep a calm head. This way, I would escape unharmed and not have to harm any of the creatures, grindylows in this case, in the process.
3. This year in Magical Creatures I learned a lot. First, I learned that I was not prepared for an encounter with a dangerous creature. In the beginning I was frightened and panicky, causing me to freak out rather than assess a situation and handle it the right way. After taking this class, I feel I can more properly deal with those types of situations now. I also learned that pygmy puffs aren't just cute shoulder decorations. They have feelings and likes and dislikes. They even have talents, like being able to pygmy puff bowl! They definitely are more complex than I thought. Overall, I think this year in Care of Magical Creatures was fun and more importantly, interesting. Next term I hope we can meet different creatures we haven't been exposed to yet. Perhaps we can take another creature home to care for like we did with the pygmy puffs, that was quite fun! I also hope we get to talke to Mr. Henry in the lake again. He was quite knowledgable. In closing, thanks for a great term, Sir. I can truthfully say that Care of Magical Creatures is my favorite class.