Quote:
Originally Posted by
Watson 
She appreciated the standing offer for chocolate. Maybe she would have another in a few minutes, but, then again, since it was a standing offer, she could always stop by again for a piece of chocolate.
Olivia blushed a very slight shade of pink when her Head of House told her that he was impressed with her progress. She was never someone who was great at taking compliments or receiving praise. "Thank you," she said with a nod. She was proud of herself. It had taken her ages to feel confident in her abilities, especially with non-verbal magic. However, somehow it all clicked when she was dueling. She couldn't explain how or why it decided to happen like that. It just did. She nodded, listening to him speak about a few spells that would help her master wandless magic in the longterm. More non-verbal ones. Alright. She could do that. "Terrific! So the more confident I feel about these spells, the better off I'll be when it comes to wandless magic? Then I'll practice every day." It could be a break from studying for OWLS.
They were going to practice now? Ummm... Okay. Olivia nodded, readying herself to jump in, but was thankful when Professor Marchand demonstrated. Phew. She watched him levitate a piece of chocolate out of the bowl and she grinned a little more. WOW. Even though it was a simple spell, it was just really awesome that he was doing it without a wand and without the incantation spoken.
What was the wand movement again? Swish and flick! Swish and flick. She focused on a piece of chocolate and performed the wand movement with her hand slowly as she said the incantation in her mind. Nothing happened. She repeated the process again. No. Nothing. Taking a deep breath, she picked up the speed at which her hand was moving and uttered the incantation in her mind. Wingardium Leviosa. The small piece of chocolate began to move but it was not lifted off of the serving dish. Hmm.. That was progress but wasn't good enough.... She needed to take a step back and not let herself get frustrated.
Olivia took a longer deep breath and placed her hand on her leg, letting herself fully relax. She lifted her hand into the air, preforming the swish and flick over the chocolate and watched as the piece of chocolate slowly resisted the spell until it lazily hovered a centimetre or two off of the bottom of the bowl. She smiled softly and then removed her hand, watching the piece of chocolate gently plop back into the bowl. "That was a lot... I can see how this can become frustrating," chuckled Olivia. It had taken a lot of concentration for her to barely lift the piece of chocolate from the bowl. More practice would be needed.
Gaston couldn't help but notice Miss Holden blushing a little when he complimented her skills in nonverbal magic. He couldn't imagine why she would be embarrassed. She deserved every bit of praise he gave her! Oh well, maybe she was just shy about that sort of thing, just like him. He wasn't sure how she would react when he gave her the list of spells to practice nonverbally. He was prepared for protests and impatience, but to his surprise, none came. In fact, her response was just the opposite! He nodded, smiling a little.
"Exactly, Miss Holden," he said and his smile grew at what she said next.
"Glad to hear it! With that attitude, you'll master wandless magic in no time!" Figuratively speaking, of course. Learning wandless magic would take time, but a positive attitude would take her far.
Speaking of which, the charms professor was slightly surprised when he managed to wandlessly levitate a chocolate. He hadn't been in a particularly uplifting mood lately... He supposed the desire to help his student must've momentarily overpowered his other emotions and helped him focus on the task at hand. That was the only explanation he could come up with! He couldn't help but smile at the sight of Miss Holden's grin, but that smile faded as he watched her try the spell on her own. Was he expecting too much of her?
He watched with growing apprehension as she tried unsuccessfully a few times.
Come on, Olivia! Keep trying, he thought. She was eventually able to budge a chocolate, but it still didn't lift. Just when he was about to suggest a break, she did it!
"Bravo, Miss Holden! Very well done!" Gaston exclaimed, applauding wildly.
"I know it might not seem like much now, but that was some amazing progress you just made." After he'd calmed down a bit from that rush of excitement, he went on,
"Keep practicing those spells I gave you, and when you feel confident with those, I'll give you another, more advanced list to work on." Quote:
Originally Posted by
ChanceCoeur When the professor moved aside, Noelle eagerly went in. She knew this professor well having worked side by side with him. "Remember how I told you that I was looking to be an auror? And an animagi?" She asked forgetting to give hellos for the moment. She was just too excited.
Noelle pulled the parchment from under her arm and waved it about. "I need you to sign a form. Its for animagi training. I have to get you, the Headmistress, and my parents to sign it." She said giving him a broad smile. She was actually doing this. Her DREAM.
Gaston had barely shut the door behind him when Miss Summers started speaking. Clearly someone was excited! He couldn't help but laugh a bit; the girl's excitement was contagious. He nodded in reply to what she asked him.
"Yes, of course," he said, taking his seat behind the desk.
"Both are very noble ambitions..." He knew she would make a wonderful Auror some day!
Then she pulled a piece of parchment from under her arm. He was glad she told him what the form was, as it was difficult for him to get a good look at it when she was waving it around like that.
"May I see it, please?" he said, reaching out to take the form while his free hand grabbed his quill. Even though he knew what it was, he wanted to read it himself before he signed anything.
"I trust Professor Stewart has thoroughly explained the process to you..." The whole process of becoming an animagus sounded painful to him, which was why he hadn't attempted it himself, but if this was what Miss Summers wanted to do, he would support her in any way possible!