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Join Date: May 2009 Location: London
Posts: 32,841
Hogwarts RPG Name:
Alexander River Hirsch
Gryffindor Third Year
Hogwarts RPG Name:
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|  urine trouble | Pat's Strong Confident Other Half | Pees Like a Champion Unicorn Racehorse
Text Cut: Kyle Quote:
Originally Posted by Zellanna  "Switch off, like one year learn wandless magic while practicing my fighting on the dummies, then next year learn more about fighting while I practice wandless magic on my own." Kyle nodded. "I think that way would be most efficient."
He listened to Hirsch speak about the complexities of casting wandless magic and not to get disheartened. Takes years to learn, huh? Well, that would be something Kyle would have to keep in mind. And then, using spells he knew well, first. "So, spells like wingardium leviosa and expelleramus?" He knew those spells pretty well so far. "Would practicing spells with my wand help in learning to cast spells wandlessly as well, then?"
From what the boy was saying,it did sound as though he was all up for a challenging couple of years. Not that Hirsch minded, but it did give him the inclination that he would need to challenge the Slytherin in the coming years. "Okay, switch off method it is. And we can see how the practising on your own is faring for you the following year." Almost like a mini practical test but..... he wasn't going to call it that.
"Exactly," Hirsch said, giving the first year a nod of his head, "It's the same procedure for trying to cast a spell non-verbally: you have to make sure that you're familiar with it verbally and with your wand, that the spell comes almost effortlessly to you, before trying to cast it any other way. Sometimes, when you're casting spells, you feel an energy within you and that's the energy you need to harness when trying to cast wandlessly. That's also how you'll know if your spell is working or not."
Text Cut: Ava Quote:
Originally Posted by RandomRaven "Thanks, Professor Hirsch." The Gryffindor smiled at that man as he complimented her OWL results. She did work very hard and sacrifice everything to earn those score and getting O for potions and muggle studies were quite unexpected. Was she satisfied about the score? Well, pretty much.
When the DADA professor talked about the dueling thing, Ava listened to everything what he said and she felt a little bit much better. Maybe she need to stop comparing herself to other people. And no, she didn't think that she would give up dueling. "Well uh... What do you think about my performance at the first round with Henry?" He should give her a little feedback so on the next round, she could do better.
"Thank you, Professor. I'm kind of excited and nervous about that." Ava said truthfully. It's been a while since she's practicing karate so she had to work his bum off to achieve. "By the way, do you practice martial arts Professor?" She curiously asked. And as for career options, Hmmmm.... "I was thinking about... something in law enforcement like Auror or Hit witch... What is exactly the difference between them? But also... I need a back-up plan if this doesn't work." Probably he had other options based on the scores that she had because honestly, she's clueless about this.
"You're welcome," he said, returning the smile with one of his own. The question about her performance during her duel against Henry was one that required a bit more thought. The man rubbed his scruffy chin, thinking back to that duel between the sixth years. "Well," he said, slowly, "You're exceptional with your defensive magic, there's no doubt about that. I'd say to work on your offensive magic as well. Try and work on more complicated spells. And, while you're at it, try and cast your spells nonverbally. They'll give you an advantage, should you find yourself in a duelling situation again."
"It's perfectly normal to be nervous." Her question about martial arts earned her a wide smile. "Yeah, I've been practising for years. Since before Durmstrang, actually. It took me a long time and a lot of practises and failed attempts to earn my black belt but it can be done." So really, he was talking from experience here. "Ah, so going down the Defence route? Excellent choice, I have to say." This made him very happy, indeed. "Hit Witches are trained to catch criminals, anyone who's going against the law. This could include petty thieves or someone committing murder but they're almost always human beings. Aurors, however, battle the Dark Arts directly. They go after Dark witches and wizards, and sometimes other creatures, and try to defeat them. Auror training is much more intense than the training for a Hit Witch. A Hit Witch is taught all about defensive magic and counter-curses and how to restrain law-breakers without attracting Muggle attention. Aurors, on the other hand, have to pass a bunch of character and aptitude tests including their defensive magic, concealment and disguise and how good they are at being stealthy and tracking down the Dark Arts."
Breathe.
"Personally, I'd suggest going along the Auror route since it sounds a lot more exciting and you'll have more to do." Not to mention that it was also more dangerous. "I have no doubts that you will get the grades you need and succeed in becoming an Auror or a Hit Witch. But if you need another path....." He paused and consulted the list again. "Maybe you could combine Charms and Transfiguration together since they're also your top subjects. Or, even, Potions?" Pause. "The Accidents and Catastrophe department at the Ministry has a division dedicated to charms and spellwork: would you want to look at researching and developing charms? Or, even, look at working behind the scenes in a crime scene as a crime scene specialist? That's in the Magical Law Enforcement department at the Ministry." Really, she had a lot of options. "You'll have to do the YATI program if you want to go along the route of an Auror but if you want to work in the A&C or the MLE departments, you might want to consider Wizarding University first. Study Advanced Charms, Transfiguration, Potions or, even, forensics." He didn't strike her as a forensics person, though, so Auror was probably the best route.
Another pause. "You could even study Advanced Defence at Wizarding University if you wanted to go there first."
Text Cut: Cassie Quote:
Originally Posted by Holmesian Feline From her point of view, Cassie didn’t outright mind the room, even if it wasn’t her style. She did spend most of her time surrounded by the cooler tones of blue present in the Ravenclaw common room and dorms which reflected in what she found most comfortable the rest of the time. But it also wasn’t her office so she only had to be there occasionally, this being the first time having been in this particular one. At Hirsch’s gesture, the fifth year moved to take the offered seat as she awaited the reaction to her question. At least grounded, there was less willingness to wander in both thoughts and physical movements.
Well at least he was glad that she was thinking about her future. It made her head spin at times. “Hard not to with OWLs right around the corner.” Looming was definitely the word for it. Looming like an ugly monster. “That’s…part of the issue,” Cass remarked in answer to his probing questions. “There’s nothing that stands out. No career path…no class I feel particularly strong in. And I’ve thought about waiting to see how the exams go, but I fear if just study everything, my brain is going to shut down.”
Forgive the hyperbole, but this Ravenclaw was just a little bit flustered.
OWLs. Hirsch couldn't help but smile at her words. After all, it was hard not to be stressed about the future with the OWLs being a present figure in her life. Probably one she was, he was going to assume, not looking forward to. "OWLs tend to have that effect on you. Good luck for them, by the way." He didn't doubt that she'd do well but it probably wasn't a good idea to mention that. "How's the studying going?"
No career path and no classes. Hm. That....... did make it difficult, didn't it? "When you're studying, make sure to take plenty of breaks in between. Short breaks but enough to let your brain relax for a while. You don't want to overload it otherwise it could have a bad affect on your overall health." Just saying. "Is there a class you feel happiest in being in? Or a class you dislike and know you definitely don't want to study in the future? Or....."
Pause.
"If you close your eyes and picture yourself five or ten years in the future doing your ideal job, one that makes you very happy, do you know what it would be?"
Text Cut: Sam Quote:
Originally Posted by hermygirl Dark Arts in the 21st Century? That was a whole lot more recent than a lot of the things their lessons covered, as far as she was aware. Most of the spells were at least decades old, if not centuries, and Ancient Runes and Arithmancy were both based on foundations older than that. She smiled and nodded. "Yeah. Since you're using that one for now, I'll check out the common room first." She could always come back, or collect it after class.
But now onto why she was here.
She didn't know that he had a file on her, not alone read it. Although, if she'd thought about such a file existing, it might explain why several professors still insisted on calling her Samantha in class - even new ones. So whilst she assumed she knew some things about her past, like most of the Hogwarts population did, his response took her aback somewhat.
It took a moment for it to sink in, to realise it was genuine. And it was something she needed to hear from someone other than her best friend; the concept of worthiness and identity had been subconsciously playing on her mind since the night the IMPS Champions had been chosen. It was hard not to make comparisons with her dorm mate, and why she hadn't been considered good enough. She relaxed a little, and her accent softened once more. "Thanks, Professor. Although I can't take all the credit..." Dora had been with her every step of the way. Gosh, she was going to miss that girl's presence when she graduated next year.
But her smile soon faltered, and she shook her head. "Not a social worker, no." Maybe it was in the right direction, but experience from the other side suggested that social work, whatever it's overarching aims, wasn't going to be the best way to achieve what she wanted to. She'd found them less than useful when her Pa had been sent to Azkaban. Abrasive, even. If Mr. Umbridge hadn't stepped in to be her guardian, who knows where she'd be now. Probably in juvie.
"Magical, I think," she confirmed. She knew Muggles had similar problems too; she'd hung out with them around the South Bank when she ventured further afield. But one thing at a time. Youth work at university sounded a promising avenue, and then another word caught her attention.
Psychology.
She'd stumbled into some of that, when looking into ways of being more understanding with her brother's social skills and apparent OCD. It'd actually been rather fascinating, although she hadn't really pursued it, given that her OWL coursework had really started kicking in about the same time. And she knew that Robin...was just Robin, and she loved him how he was. But understanding how someone's upbringing could affect them, and how best to overcome it? That was starting to be an inspiring thought indeed.
"Is...it possible to focus on child psychology? And do the youth stuff with that, rather than t'other way round? Maybe with some...education-support type stuff?"
He did hope, for her sake, that there was a spare copy in the common room library that she could take. One because she might find it useful and another being that he still had a few notes he still needed to make on an upcoming class and the contents happened to be in this very book. "Good idea. Let me know what you think of it." Mostly because he was curious.
The slight change in her accent was noted and he smiled. "You're welcome, Sam." Samantha sounded very formal, after all. "Well, whatever's helped you, or whoever's helped you, it seemed to have worked." And was a sign that your past really doesn't define you and sometimes, you just need a helping hand through it all.
So not a social worker and working with magical kids. That seemed to have narrowed down the choices quite a bit, making it easier to focus on one path. Which, according to her question, seemed to be psychology. "You can focus on child psychology, yes. I think you'll have to do a year, or just a term, of normal psychology. Learn about the basic theories that are applicable to all human beings, no matter what their ages are. Then they'll probably teach you about your focus: yours being child psychology." He would probably have to order some books or check to see if the common room library had any books on child psychology. "With the specialism, you would already get the certification to work with kids but.... when you say education-support, what do you mean? Like, an educational psychologist alongside that?"
"You could use this to go on and become a child psychologist, if you want, and work for a psychologist firm, a school or, even, work for St Mungos. You might find yourself in an office or consultation room, maybe even in St Mungos, or having to visit the client's home itself. But if you want to focus on education-support, a school might be your setting." Did that help?
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