Moving to the board, Neva added the last of the shared information so that everyone could update their notes before they moved on.

"Great answers, everyone. We've touched on a lot of interesting points about tattoos. Miss Fox brought up another area of tattoos that I'd like for us to discuss in a respectful manner. It is clear that tattoos aren't for everyone, and that is okay, but I'm curious to know why. What reasons can you come up with for people to get tattoos? What reasons can you come up with for people not to get them?" She tilted her head, eyes sweeping over the group of students. "Please try not to repeat answers. Alright, let's discuss."

OOC:Hello lovelies! Next question is a two parter: What reasons do people have for getting tattoos? What reasons do they have for not getting them? Class will move on tomorrow in the late afternoon sometime (depending on how crazy work is!)

Glow in the dark tattoos were ones Claudine was familiar with. Yes, she had been made aware of them after her trip to the tattoo shop in Diagon Alley with Ash. The magical time telling tattoos were not what she was familiar with. Colour her interested though. While listening to the other students, she made her notes. It didn’t take too long for her to complete that task. Once done, Claudine absently tapped her quill against the desk as she pondered the new questions.

Her hand, still holding the quill, went up. “Sometimes people want a permanent reminder about something. It can be a symbol or words that mean a lot to them. It can serve as their motivation. On the other hand, others may be opposed to tattoos because the dyes used in tattoos can cause allergic reactions to the skin.”

Lisa simply raised her eyebrows at V’s response to the Professor’s question and chose not to offer a question. She cast a quick look to Serena to see what she thought before focusing back on the lesson on the answers that her peers had offered. She did LOVE Serena’s answer and her mind went down a rabbit hole of imagination as she imagined what kind of things she could use a tattoo for. Secret code or message? How neat!!

“A tattoo in some cultures, like the Maori people, can show social status and celebrate their heritage! It sounds painful though… I’m not sure if I could get one…. maybe a temporary one.”

She wasn’t a fan of needles. Getting injections as a kind in the doctor’s office had been enough of an experience. There was one time that she had hidden underneath the table to avoid injection and doctor.

Wait, so there are tattoos that are not permanent?? Valentina had no idea. Well, she is definitely getting a tiny one for sure then. In the future, obviously. She can definitely get on board with a tattoo that is non permanent.

"Well, one might choose to not get them because they are painful." SUPER painful, right?? Needles hurt!!

Everyone had good points so far, and as each answered he looked at them wondering if they were interested in tattoos or trying to picture them with one. It was hard to see some of them, probably just because they were so young, but others he could. His sister? A small crown somewhere seemed fitting to him. Probably over a lightsaber. And Ash was clearly taken with the phoenix, which he wasn't surprised by at all. It was quite fitting for her.

Valentina raised a good point too though. It would be painful, especially depending on where it was placed. He heard anywhere on the bone was excruciating, while if there was extra layers of fat or maybe even muscle it would hurt a little less. Still something to consider.

He raised his hand to give another pro answer. "From a psychological standpoint, getting a tattoo can be an exercise of control from someone. Like a physical manifestation of them taking back their own life, like after trauma or repression." It was the same thing with piercings, and even dying hair as he'd heard before.

Magic tattoos sounded like a lot of work. If she were to ever get one, she might have to opt for a static one because. Because she wouldn't want to worry about breaking the law by accident if she happened to go to a muggle shop or something. But these were worries for another day, even though some of her other classmates seemed to have lots of heated opinions about tattoos right now. What was the big deal? If you didn't want one then just don't get one, duh.

"Maybe someone wants one because they like how it looks," Kinsay added casually as she lowered her hand back down. There didn't have to be a big reason. "Like maybe it emphasizes a feature they really like on themselves or it just looks cool." She paused for a moment before another thought occurred to her. "Some brands like their models to be a certain way, maybe some places like their models to have tattoos because it matches their look." So really, it was kind of like having your ears pierced or pairing a scarf with an outfit. Kind of. Maybe she ought to start incorporating tattoos into some of her own sketches.

Quote:

Tattoos
-Evidence of tattoos can be found in almost all ancient cultures all over the world
-Earliest tattoos made from ink created by materials found in nature
-Tattoos are a form of self expression and can be meaningful or for fun
-Magical Tattoo Examples: Glow in the dark, move, tell time, warn of danger (Chakra tattoo), keep you morally in check (conscience tattoo)
-Spells and Potions can help to stop moving tattoos for a brief period of time
-Spies could use tattoos for communication purposes
-Tattoos are typically permanent, but they do have tattoos that are not
-Tattoos are wounds and should be cared for. Tattoo shops should be cleanly

Reasons for and against getting a tattoo:
For:
-Daily reminder of something meaningul
-Motivation
-Social Status
-Celebration of heritage
-Form of taking back control or ownership of your person, sense of power over something
-Aesthetic
-Way they call attention to certain features
Against:
-Allergic Reactions
-Pain factor
-Don't like the look

"I'm really impressed with your answers, everyone. Thanks for putting thought into them. As you can see, there are numerous reasons for and against getting tattooed, and not everyone is going to agree on this subject. However, what I like about art is that it doesn't have to be understood or approved of by everyone to have power and be meaningful. As long as you are taking something away from art, especially art you choose to permanently wear on your skin, I think it's a beautiful thing." And that was her two cents on the matter.

"Today we will be learning a spell that allows us only to temporarily mark our skin with a tattoo. The Tattoo Charm allows us to set ink to our skin for a period of time, the length of time depending entirely on the power and ability behind the spell. The incantation is Corius pronounce cor-i-us. To use this spell, you first use a marker or markers to create a picture on the skin. The colors you use are entirely up to you. Once you've done that, you take your wand, say the incantation, and trace the design you've created." Simple, yes? "Now there will be a slight burning sensation as the spell takes hold, but it's nothing more than what you might feel when holding your hands up to the fire for warmth." Certainly nothing to be afraid of and nothing that could hurt you. "Once done, you'll note that the ink has set into your skin and can not be smudged or wiped away. It'll fade as the spell's power fades, but until then you will have yourself a beautiful tattoo." Well, maybe that was being generous. Not everyone was a great illustrator, but you know..

"Your task for the remainder of class is to work alone or with a partner to practice this spell. Brainstorm ideas and think up a tattoo that might represent you in some way. It can be in words or picture form, whatever you like best. If you are not an artist, I don't mind if your partner takes on the drawing role, but I do want everyone to perform their own spellwork, please." Easy enough, yes? "Once you've come up with an idea and had it drawn on your skin, please use the spell to turn it into a tattoo."

"You'll find markers in all colors up here at my desk and you're welcome to use as many or as little as you like. There are also special wipes to help wipe away the ink before the spell is cast if you mess up your initial design. If you have any questions along the way, please raise your hand and I'll be along to help. Alright everyone, let's get started!"

Neva moved behind her desk and produced a box with all manner of markers inside, a rainbow of colors perfect for drawing something beautiful. Once that was done, she took a seat and waited for the fun to begin.

OOC: Hey friends! Main activity is up. Task is to come up with an idea, draw a tattoo on yourself (and/or your partner, if you'd like to do that) with a marker, and then perform the spell by saying the incantation and tracing your wand over the design! Please make sure all designs or sayings are SS appropriate! You'll have until the 29th to complete this activity so take your time, get creative, and have fun! Remember that if you actually attempt to draw it out and post it here, you must follow SS rules in relation to posting graphics!

Wow... having a tattoo sounded cool but also a lot of work as well, Tadhg wondered if magic was done on bigger tattoos or did the person sit through it all? He couldn't imagine sitting for hours to get an tattoo. He had trouble sitting patiently through class at times, but hours on a tattoo was a long time. Although he loved the details and meaning behind them, some had interesting history and backgrounds behind them.


Writing down notes he added more to the list that he thought was also important like reasons not to get a tattoo, family history and diseases like bloodborne. But a good reason to get one was to cover scars up due to surgeries or emotional trauma that left scars. Hearing what the assignment was, he turned to Lia. "Partners my lovely Bubbles?" He asked her grinning.

At Professor Peralta's response and comment on how excited she'd been, he briefly considered asking if she'd had a tattoo but... held off since really that seemed far too personal of a question for a Professor. So instead, he focused on the other comments and reasons added, before listening as she started to explain the lesson plan for the day.

And in that moment, he decided there might not have been a cooler Professor than Peralta. They were actually learning how to do their own temporary tattoos? This would certainly be a spell he'd want to remember and use. The hardest sounding part of this lesson too... was the drawing part. Yes, he'd been practicing, but he was certainly not near to being good enough to draw something he'd want to wear around. If even only for a short amount of time. He briefly considered asking Claudine or Ash for help, people he knew who were quite artistic and good at it, but he also didn't want to eat into their time and he was certainly not good enough to make something for them either.

So... maybe calligraphy it would be. And he could bother someone else with artistic ability later. He'd make note to ask Ash.

He pulled out a black marker from his bag, finding a spot to sit and mess around with someone on a piece of parchment first before he put it on his skin. He opted to go for something fairly basic, given the time crunch of class and one of the first things that came to mind was his house name but in his parents and grandparents native language. He'd tried practicing writing Ravenclaw before in Korean, so now he'd just have to try again and see if he could get it looking well enough to transfer to skin.

He set to work.

ASH LOVED THIS CLASS OK.

And right now, she also loved Evan. Platonically. BECAUSE HIS ANSWER WAS SO GOOD. He covered exactly what she wanted to say! That was why she wanted a tattoo! He was awesome. Peralta was awesome. This class was AWESOME. In conclusion, everything was great.

For the group activity, she walked over to Evan. “Evan Evan Evan Evan Evan. D’you wanna be partners? I’m good at art stuff.” And he was good at knowing things. So they made a perfect team.

Pleeeease. Pretty please.

This. Class. Was. AWESOME.

Ash had one thing on her mind right now: TATTOOS.

It wasn't long after he determined he'd try alone though, that he was hearing his name from a very excited Ash. Which given it was often she seemed that euphoric, instantly there was a smile from him. And an even BIGGER one when she was actually volunteering to see if he wanted a partner. Which he did pause and look at her first for a moment, "I would LOVE to but... are you sure you want to? I'm still not great at drawing if you need help with that part." Though he would certainly try if she wanted him too!

He pushed his doodles aside for a minute, having found at least one he kind of liked the look of. Maybe he could do that with a book like the one he'd found he liked the looks of. Though it certainly wouldn't look as cool without the watercolor on it. Which.... wait. "Do you think if we use a medium different than markers the charm would still work?" Like if he did paint on his arm??

OOOOH.

Valentina couldn't believe this. A tattoo spell? SO, they were going to get their own tattoos? Temporary but still!! This was so amazing. However, she couldn't draw at all. Which would mean that she'd have to ask someone to draw on her - which would be slightly embarrassing. She thought for a few minutes - slightly fed up - Wait, didn't the professor say that the tattoo could be in words OR a picture form?? Words, it is. Now, where did she want it? She got up to get some markers, deep in thought. On the inside of her wrist, maybe? It had to be something related to dance, obviously. Hmm.

Note. Notes. And a whole lot of notes. Dahlia never minded note taking but sometimes, it made her fingers cramp up, like now. Occasionally a few moments break was needed so that she could flex her fingers and send a very quick but sweet smile to the boy sat beside her. Yup, that would be Tadhg. Seeing him taking down notes the way she was always made her smile, it meant that if she had possibly missed anything.. hopefully he hadn't and vice versa.

The more Peralta talked, the more notes she wrote down. Well at least until the professor explained what they would be working on today. Creating their own temporary tattoos. Ones that would remain on their skin until the charms power faded away.

Whoa. WHOA!!! OMG!!!

How epic was that?!

The quill she had been writing with literally fell from her fingers, blue eyes going wide and a bright smile forming on her lips. This was going to be sooooo much fun! Already lost in her own thoughts of what she was going to draw, a certain someones voice snapped her quickly back to where she needed to be. A soft pink tint staining her cheeks as she mirrored the grin on Tadhg's face. "You know it. Do you have anything in mind yet?" She had a few ideas but nothing solid.

Getting up she moved her chair over beside his and brought along her quill and parchment too in case she needed to write anything else down. "Lets go get some markers and see what we can come up with." Maybe taking a look at all the different colors will help spark an idea. Heading up towards the professors desk and having a look at all the markers made of her think of a question. "Professor, we have to trace every single line or little mark drawn.. correct? Or just the base lines will do?" Cause she wasn't the best at drawing and well she didn't want to over complicate things either.

Victoria was slowly going into outrage mode, and she wasn't sure why she hated the idea of all it, but she did. And the idea of practicing on herself was OUT of the question.

So she crossed her arms, looking around, and scowled. She did NOT want to practice. This charm was nothing SHE would ever use.

Victoria Gellar was not going to practice this charm. She simply put her wand down and watched as Ash looked positively ENTHRALLED at the idea of giving herself a tattoo. Well. Ash could do whatever she wanted with HER skin, but V would nEVER EVER EVER EVER CHANGE HER MIND EVER. At the age of twelve, she was sure she wouldn't. THERE WAS NOTHING THAT COULD. NOTHING.

Hello, Mum and Dad. Today in Charms class I got a tattoo!

What a wonderful way to start her letter home. HAH. Serena wondered how they would react. Not happy at all. Would they come to the school and really check if she had a tattoo? Maybe she SHOULD send a letter like that so she could spend some time with her dad.

With that in mind, Serena set out to find a partner. In all honesty, she disliked these group activities. She didn't like relying on someone else's pace to get things done. She could do it all on her own. Even better.

But whatever. Professors...EYE ROLL.



Spotting a stubborn V GELLAR, Serena went over and nudged her. "Practice on me, yeah?"

Serena had a feeling V wouldn't want her to practice in return, but like her earlier thought. Serena could practice on herself and do it better. For some reason she was beginning to like messing with V. It was easy and fun.

The Slytherin could agree with most of the answers given by the others. However, by the end of the discussion, she was pretty much noncommittal to actually having a tattoo of her own. Maybe sometime in the future she would change her mind for she was neither completely for nor completely against tats. Temporary tats weren’t a bad thing but needless to say Claudine hoped that in a near future class Peralta would teach them how to charm the tats to move. For now, she’d brainstorm her temporary one. As usual, she opted to work alone but if anyone wanted help with their drawings, she’d be happy to help. She wasn’t an artist for nothing.

But what did she want her tattoo to be? Claudine mulled as she flipped through her sketchpad for ideas. Something to do with creatures? Simply words? Hmmm. There were so many possibilities. In the end, it wasn’t the sketchpad that gave her an idea; it was a memory from her first year, that year they’d been stuck at Beauxbatons.

With inspiration filling her head, the Snakette flipped her sketchpad to a clean sheet and began working on a design of what her tat would be.

”Good question. Listen up, everyone.” Neva looked around, calling attention to the group. ”The small detailing lines are not important when tracing with your wand. The main lines of your tattoo should be your focus. Everything within those main outlines of your design will also be impacted by the spell once it’s cast.”

Her sketch on paper was a quick one given the time constraint for the lesson. It was basically a few stemmed roses and they were on fire. She chuckled to herself as she recalled how she had accidentally set the roses on fire during a lesson, and the chaos that followed. Good times. Now that she was satisfied with what her tattoo would look like, Claudine headed to grab some markers. She needed green, black, red and orange.

Once seated again, the girl began working on her skin. The tattoo was to be on her inner left wrist so at present, her left hand was sort of awkwardly angled so that the drawing could be done with her right hand. The drawing was a detailed one, down to thorns on the stems. There were five roses in total since Claudine didn’t want to go for too big of a tat. Claudine Blaze… setting fire to rose bushes since 2099. That was how this tat represented her. Anyway. It was coming along nicely and soon she’d get started with the magic.

What a relief!

V looked up at the voice and seemed visibly to ease up on the tension front. "Okay...and you'll also practice on yourself, then?" she asked gently. Serena was a good friend, and she was glad to have a fellow Slytherin like her as her friend. Serena was also dead smart, and she couldn't be happier that she, Ollie, Serena, Remy, and Lisa all had their little study group. Especially since they were all smart in their own right. V supposed she was the least useful of the group, but they were all helping her out. Maybe she should pay them back someday so she didn't feel like she owed anyone anything.

"Because I don't want anything on my skin. Nothing. Not even a DOT." She gave Serena a serious look.

Although he had been reserved throughout the lesson, not responding to any questions, Daniel had been copying down the pros and cons of getting a tattoo in his notebook. Just in case it would come up in a test later on in the year.

Daniel shut his notebook close and tucked the pen behind his pointy ear when it was time to start the activity. It was a good thing that Professor Peralta suggested that they could work solely too because the second year Hufflepuff was not in the mood to partner up today.

First, he needed a design. Something that he would enjoy getting if he ever got a tattoo himself. His mind went instantly to stories. Maybe he could draw a little book with a quote that he liked? But first, he needed to get some markers so after the Professor had set a box on her desk with coloured markers, he stood up to get some.

Ash shrugged. “How’s your handwriting?” That’s what she could really use help with. While she had a lot of artistic talent, her handwriting left something to be desired. It was messy and cramped, like she was worried she’d be interrupted soon. It had been like that for a couple of years. She didn’t write slowly or clearly anymore. “What words would go well with a phoenix? I need something short.” She looked pensive as she glanced over at Evan. “No idea. I’ll bring by some watercolors later so we can experiment with that. What are you planning on getting right now?” She started drawing red on her arm. It didn’t matter if she messed up, she could get rid of any mistakes before casting the spell. “Phoenixes are very special to me. I’m pleasantly surprised the professor put up a picture of a phoenix tattoo... it made my day so much happier. It’s been a rough week.” She teared up a bit. This class had... remarkably good timing.

As Serena had assumed, V wouldn't want to be tattooed. It didn't bother her a bit. Serena might have been EWW about V's comments about tattoos, but everyone was entitled to their own opinion.

"Yeah, I'll do it on myself. More practice for me." She smirked a little and went and grabbed a black marker. She was going for a traditional look. No color. When she came back, she handed the marker to V. "Do you draw well?"

Handwriting? He gave a small smile at that, showing his book which had a neatly scrawled Ravenclaw above the Korean characters. "it's decent. I did calligraphy for a bit for fun." Maya was better at it, but y'know. Words for a phoenix, hm? He paused to consider that, before listing off a few. "Rebirth, Rising, Resurrection. Out of Ash spawns beauty." Just a few ideas that came to mind right away for him, though he could probably think of more as well if she detested all of those. "Watercolor experimentation sounds nice."

As for now?? He pointed to his drawn Ravenclaw hangul. "I'm thinking that. For culture and... Where I am now. It's pretty basic, but I like Ravenclaw so I wouldn't mind trying something out as a reminder of that." He grabbed his black pen too, beginning to draw carefully on the inside of his left wrist. "I think I remember us talking about that. Wouldn't your autobiography name have something to do with phoenixes?' Though it was unlikely that he could be misremembering such a fact. Hearing the change to her tone, he glanced over - expression softening a bit as his voice lowered. "Are you alright?"

Valentina decided to tattoo the inside of her arm, because even if it did end up messy - no one would be able to see it. Besides, it was going to fade away soon. She thought about just writing the word dance but maybe she should add something to it. Thinking, she picked up an orange marker - favorite color obviously - and started to write the word dance in small letters. Okay, not bad. Chewing the inside of her lip, trying to focus, she started to draw a ballet shoe, holding her left hand rather awkwardly ( inner arm was a bad idea oops )- a small one, nothing too big and noticeable - before adding another shoe sitting on top of it. She pulled back - um - it was okay, she supposed. Not as bad as she thought it would end up being. Now, to use the spell.

With the drawing now completed, Claudine took her time in shading the relevant parts with colours. She took her time because colouring out of the lines would only make the tattoo untidy. After some minutes, she downed the markers and determined that her completed drawing was more satisfactory than she realised. Darn. Claudine realised how far she had come as a self - taught artist and couldn’t help but be proud of herself.

Anyway.

Back to work.

The seventh year tried out the incantation a few times. “Corius. Corius. Corius." Pretty simple enough. Dragon heartstring wand in hand, she said the incantation once more, this time with intent and concentration. The next step was to trace the out the main lines of her design on her wrist.