Originally Posted by Destiny

Okay, well, Vanora didn't want to greet that girl anyway.



And see!?

She liked this girl already! Not only was she happy that she joined Hogwarts, unless she was just saying that, which probably was the case, she introduced herself. Introductions were important. Putting the worm she had collected in her jar, she turned to face the girl just so she had a face to go with the name. Got it. "Nice to meet you, Minerva. I'm happy to be here." So far. She would see how the lesson went.



But, if all the kids stayed as excited as they seemed to be, she didn't think there would be any problems. Hopefully. She was hoping. "Good day to you."



"Hello!" Vanora grinned from her spot on the ground. Probably should be getting up soon. He jar was almost full of worms..



Were the kids like this in their Herbology lessons? Merlin, it was just a little bit of dirt and some wriggling worms. Surely they had touched.. messier things in their plant class. But to each their own. "Hello." And he didn't have to shake her hand if her didn't want to. Hmph.



Her face was going to hurt from all the grinning and greeting she was doing. Vanora lifted her free hand and gave herself a poke in the cheek. Stop hurting! "Hello! Nice to meet you!" Although, it would have been nicer if there was a name to go with that greeting.



"Hi there!" she grinned.



At least some of them were actually sitting on the grass. Unlike those few standers. Vanora made a small mental note to remember to place some kind of bench thing down for the next lesson. "Hello."



Vanora smiled as the newest arrival made her way into the pasture. "Hi!"



The boy had actually laid down in the dirt! That was what she liked to see. "I told you." she called over to him, returning the thumbs up with one of her own. Maybe he could pick worms while he was down there, too.



Quiet one. Vanora pointed at him.



She wasn't really that hard to spot, was she? Oh well. "Hello."



O_O

Madame?

Err.. okay. Vanora sent the girl another smile before glancing over at the nearest covered cage. Which just happened to be emitting smoke.

Probably a really good time to start the lesson.


Moving into a sitting position, Vanora placed the worm that she was holding in between her fingers into the jar before putting the lid on top. And in case anyone was wondering if they were going to be working with worms, which she suspected they were all thinking, and which the answer would be no, she slowly hid the jar behind her back.

If no one could see it, it wasn't there.

"All right." she cleared her throat to get everyone's attention as she wiped her hands off on her jeans. "I think everyone who wants to be here is here, and if they're not.." Then they were just going to be late, that was all. "As some of you already know, I am Professor Newlin and as everyone should know, this is Care of Magical Creatures." There was some emphasis on the 'Care' part; they would see why when the hands on lesson starts. The best part, in her opinion.

And just because she really did want to get to the best part, she pulled the cage that was smoking the most closer to herself and tugged the covering from off of it.

She waited for the imaginary 'ohhs' and 'ahhs' of the students to die down before.. "Who can tell me what they know about Fire Crabs? One thing per person, and," if it wasn't too much trouble, "it would be nice if you told me your names as well."

OOC: The lesson has officially started! Don't worry about mentioning the same thing as another person, you will still get credit for it. But creativity is awesome, just so you know. =D

Originally Posted by Destiny

While Cassia's answer wasn't entirely wrong, Vanora shook her head and gave the cage that held the Fire Crab a little turn. "They don't actually breathe fire."

How many people would laugh if she said fart?



Turning away from Cassia, the smile she was wearing instantly faded when she glanced at.. Daichi? That was his name, right? He may not have introduced himself, but she had heard Kurumi talking to him. Not that she was really listening..

"Why?" her eyebrows raised slightly, "Because that's what we're going to be working with today?" Would he rather dig for worms!?



"Well, I've never heard of a Fire Crab burning off someone's nose." But then again, she didn't know anyone who would want their nose that close to its rear.

"But it will try to defend itself." So really, whichever body part was closest would be in danger.



That was a very good question!

Vanora shifted herself on the ground more comfortably, and was just about to get into a very long winded speech to answer when another student spoke up. Actually, it was that Ravenclaw who spoke up. Who.. wasn't all that wrong. "They're actually not dumb creatures." And if she was holding the Fire Crab on her lap like she wanted to, she would have covered his ears so he wouldn't have to hear such insults.

"Their shells are heavy, so yes, it does slow them down a bit. And while they can defend themselves to some extent, it's not enough. People who hunt Fire Crabs, poachers, they don't exactly travel on their own. And even if they do travel on their own, it's not that difficult to capture," or kill, "a Fire Crab. The shells are hard and impenetrable, but the rest of the creature is not."

And she didn't know what rear-mirrors would do to help, so she didn't even mention them. She gave the Hufflepuff a smile, though. That answered the question?



Scary!?

Vanora lifted the cage of the Fire Crab and moved her face closer. How could anyone think that? They were cute! And their shells were shiny. "That's just an opinion."



"That could go either way, you know. The Fire Crabs may have adapted to the heat and the fire, but no one really knows if they like it." Fire does come out of its rear.

Did the creatures really like that? Hmm.



Err..

Okay..

Vanora blinked up at the boy, and it may have taken her a moment to think of what to say. That was.. just wrong on so many levels. "There may be something wrong with you if you are comparing the looks and temperature of a Fire Crab to the girls of Hogwarts." She was going to talk to Cece about checking that one out.



That answer seemed oddly, oddly familiar. And it only took her a second to realize why.

"Right. No one should ride them." And if the girl was thinking it.. "The fire does not make it move faster."



Vanora listened to the rest of the students give their answers, even chuckling at the couple who mentioned the Fire Crab's 'bathroom' habits. Thankfully, the creatures that she had caged had already been fed and even did their stuff beforehand. That would have been quite a mess.

Anyway..

"Right. So, as the rest of you said, Fire Crabs are native to the islands of Fiji. And as you can see." she pointed to the Fire Crab in the cage before slowly opening the door of it, so she could grab him once he made his way out. If he ever made his way out, "Despite its six legs, it has more of a resemblance to that of a turtle. The jeweled shell, which a few of you said could be fitted with either rubies, sapphires or emeralds, is highly valuable for both wizards and muggles. Wizards use the shell as a cauldron because its much harder than any material and won't burn as easily. The muggles use it for the jewels." Both selfish. "There is something that neither a crab or turtle can do, but the Fire Crab can. If the creature feels threatened, or even annoyed," as Theodore said, "they defend themselves by shooting a jet of flame from their.. well, their butts." No laughing, please. "Also, I don't know how," and she didn't want to either, "but Rubeus Hagrid somehow mated a Fire Crab and a Manticore to create the Blast-Ended Skrewts." But enough about them.

"And while there is a reserve, which I worked at before coming to Hogwarts, Fire Crab poaching is still happening and the number of creatures decrease each year." Sad, right? "They shouldn't be kept as pets." Even if the Ministry says people could. "But that is just my opinion."

Picking up the Fire Crab once he was out of the cage, Professor Newlin held it gently in her arms as she stood from the ground. She pulled out her wand, flicking it in the direction of the rest of the cages and the table by the shed, causing all the covers to come off. She may have forgotten about the jar of worms..

"As you can see, there are enough Fire Crabs for each of you." She glanced over at Daichi, if that was his name, and Kai, giving them both a small smile. "But if you'd rather work in pairs, that is fine."

"If there aren't any questions, I'd like you all to grab a bucket, a brush and a washcloth from off the table, then stand by one of the cages. Don't let the Fire Crabs out just yet. We'll have to get the water ready first."

Yup. They were going to be cleaning a Fire Crab.

OOC: Okay! If your character doesn't have any question, have them go over and pick up their supplies then pick out a Fire Crab to stand by! This does not have to be done in one post, you can RP finding a partner if you'd like. Or just talking, whatever. We'll start the activity in about.. 36 hours. So you all have time to post. =D
Partners should have two Fire Crabs.

Originally Posted by ♦ Peeves ♦

What was this Peeves was hearing from his nearby hiding spot? That professor lady was going to let the kiddies play with FIRE Crabs? Well now, he couldn't let an opportunity such as this one pass him by.

Zooming out from his spot in the trees he made his presence known.

"FIRE!

THE CRABS ARE ON FIRE! EVERYONE RUN! SAVE YOURSELVES!"

Flying around their heads he spotted a jar of dirt... and worms.

PERFECT!

"HAVE NO FEAR, PEEVES IS HERE! HE'LL PUT OUT THOSE FIRES!" Or maybe just feed the crabs.

Swooping down he snatched up the jar FULL of creepy crawlies and started dumping them all over the place. Worms were everywhere! On the ground, tables... on the students, in their hair, slithering down their backs...

Originally Posted by Destiny

Hehe.

Well, while she thought that a person would be fast enough to move out of the way before a Fire Crab could actually burn them, Theodore was thinking along the right path this time. At least, he wasn't talking about another part of the face getting burned. "That's more of a possibility. But let's just hope these Fire Crabs don't get that annoyed."



Oh!

Another really good question. Vanora shifted the Fire Crab she was holding to her other arm as she turned to face Kurumi. "I'm not entirely sure. But, since the Fire Crab is a protected species, even if they were to die of natural causes, I don't think they would use the gems for an hour glass." And now she was curious as to where those gems came from that were in the hourglasses. "Perhaps that is a question for the Headmistress." There could be some extra points if the Prefect did ask the woman, too. Hmm.



And finally, the question she was actually waiting for! Vanora thought that would be the question everyone would be asking. Unless, which was a huge possibility, everyone wanted to see a Fire Crab shoot its flame. It was an amazing thing to watch.

"As soon as everyone has their supplies and a Fire Crab, I'll let you know." she tossed Cassia a wink, and was just about to address the class once more when..



Peeves happened.

As if she wasn't nervous enough teaching her very first lesson, she just had to deal with the Poltergeist. Heaving a great sigh, and mumbling a few colorful words under her breath, Vanora placed the Fire Crab she had been holding back in its cage. No need to see the amazing act of Fire Crab butt flaming while there were kids being wormed on. And.. did Kurumi just push Theodore to the ground!? She did realize it was Peeves who threw the worms, right!? Dear Merlin..

"PEEVES!" she turned around so quickly that the few worms that had landed on her flew right off. And they were already digging their way into the ground. Did he know how long it took her to collect them all!? "I swear to Merlin, I will march myself right into Hogwarts, grab the Bloody Baron by the chains and drag him out here if you do not leave." Idle threat? Yes. Because everyone knew that she wouldn't be able to grab the Baron's chains. Another heaving sigh and she turned back to the students.

"They are only worms, they won't hurt you. So don't hurt them." As in, if she saw anyone try to squash them, she would take so many points away. So. Many. Points.