Another day, another transfig lesson. Hoisting her bag up over her shoulder, Vera pulled her uniform robes a bit tighter around her shoulder as she entered the room, doing a quick scan to see that everything was where it generally should be. She noticed the buttons immediately, and raised an eyebrow in a quiet question (to no one in particular) of what those could be for. But as Hogwarts Professors liked their secrets, she wouldn't ask anything. Instead, the young woman just turned her attention to Professor Carton and nodded her in greeting.

"Hello, Professor. Lovely day, isn't it? If a bit cold." Thankfully now that she was in the classroom, it was very comfortable as Professor C was always good about making sure it was a good temperature for the students. Selecting a desk to sit at, Vera slid into a spot and pulled out her notebook and quill. She would refrain, at least for the moment, from shaking the bottle of buttons around. Even if they had permission to do so.

Ary liked watching raindrops race down windows. There was a fair bit of entertainment in that little activity, and it was why he had paused at one of the ginormous windows to do exactly that. The Slytherin was having a rather delightful time until her remembered that Transfiguration was due to begin shortly.

Ary took off at a brisk walk so that he quickly arrived at the classroom. To his great relief, the lesson hadn't started; in fact, it seemed that he was among the first there. Spotting Carton, he gave the usual friendly greeting then went to grab a seat. On his way, one of those greetings were given to Vera.

The rain didn't bother this Paton one bit! As a matter of fact she had found some time for a quick run outside earlier (before the thunder had started) in between her lessons. There wasn't any need to worry though, the third year had gone back to her dorm and warmed up and changed so she was no longer wet from the rain.

Well maybe her hair was a tad bit damp in some areas but that had nothing to do with rain. Either way, a bright smile was on her face as she bounced into the classroom, wiggling her fingers in greeting to Professor Carton and Vera. "Hello, Professor. It's really raining out there now.. but the rain sounds lovely, doesn't it?" The sound was soothing most of the time. And the thunder was loud just like she was. Finding herself a seat near Ary, her hand brushing his as she did so, Bry sat herself down and began to take out her usual things for the lesson before her eyes went to the jar of buttons on her desk. "What do you think these are for?" she asked Ary quietly, picking a pink one out of the jar to look at it more closely.

SPOILER!!: Individual replies

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chelliephone

Another day, another transfig lesson. Hoisting her bag up over her shoulder, Vera pulled her uniform robes a bit tighter around her shoulder as she entered the room, doing a quick scan to see that everything was where it generally should be. She noticed the buttons immediately, and raised an eyebrow in a quiet question (to no one in particular) of what those could be for. But as Hogwarts Professors liked their secrets, she wouldn't ask anything. Instead, the young woman just turned her attention to Professor Carton and nodded her in greeting.

"Hello, Professor. Lovely day, isn't it? If a bit cold." Thankfully now that she was in the classroom, it was very comfortable as Professor C was always good about making sure it was a good temperature for the students. Selecting a desk to sit at, Vera slid into a spot and pulled out her notebook and quill. She would refrain, at least for the moment, from shaking the bottle of buttons around. Even if they had permission to do so.

Norman hadn't been standing long when the students began to file in, starting with Thanatos. ”Hello, Miss Thanatos,” he replied, giving the young Gryffindor a slight smile. ”Yes, lovely day for an indoor lesson.” He watched her take a seat, half-expecting her to pick up the button jar, but that didn't happen.

Quote:

Originally Posted by FearlessLeader19

Ary liked watching raindrops race down windows. There was a fair bit of entertainment in that little activity, and it was why he had paused at one of the ginormous windows to do exactly that. The Slytherin was having a rather delightful time until her remembered that Transfiguration was due to begin shortly.

Ary took off at a brisk walk so that he quickly arrived at the classroom. To his great relief, the lesson hadn't started; in fact, it seemed that he was among the first there. Spotting Carton, he gave the usual friendly greeting then went to grab a seat. On his way, one of those greetings were given to Vera.

Norman turned his attention back to the door just as Atreyu-Rehman walked in. He nodded, returning the boy's greeting with a wave. ”Hello, Mr. Atreyu-Rehman. You're right on time.”

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kolyander

The rain didn't bother this Paton one bit! As a matter of fact she had found some time for a quick run outside earlier (before the thunder had started) in between her lessons. There wasn't any need to worry though, the third year had gone back to her dorm and warmed up and changed so she was no longer wet from the rain.

Well maybe her hair was a tad bit damp in some areas but that had nothing to do with rain. Either way, a bright smile was on her face as she bounced into the classroom, wiggling her fingers in greeting to Professor Carton and Vera. "Hello, Professor. It's really raining out there now.. but the rain sounds lovely, doesn't it?" The sound was soothing most of the time. And the thunder was loud just like she was. Finding herself a seat near Ary, her hand brushing his as she did so, Bry sat herself down and began to take out her usual things for the lesson before her eyes went to the jar of buttons on her desk. "What do you think these are for?" she asked Ary quietly, picking a pink one out of the jar to look at it more closely.

Norman noticed Paton's slightly damp hair and briefly wondered if the young Slytherin had been caught in the rain. No matter, he wasn't going to draw attention to it if she wasn't. ”Hello, Miss Paton,” he replied, returning her finger wiggle with a hand wave. He nodded in agreement. ”It does, though I hope the sound doesn't lull everyone to sleep!” Pattering rain sounds tended to do that, and he needed his students to be alert!

Norman glanced out the door and down the Hall. After allowing a few more minutes for stragglers, he checked his watch: 1:00 on the dot. With a flick of his wand, he closed the door with a soft click. ”Good afternoon, everyone,” he said, facing the group. ”Let's get started with a quick review of the four branches of transfiguration. They are transformation - turning one thing into something else; vanishment - making something disappear into thin air; conjuration - making something appear from thin air; and untransfiguration - exactly what it sounds like, the reversal of a transfiguration.”

He paused a moment before continuing, ”Today we'll focus on these two…” He flicked his wand, and the words CONJURATION and TRANSFORMATION appeared on the blackboard. ”Now, what do you know about conjugation and transformation? How are the two branches similar? How are they different? In which scenarios would one or the other be useful?”

OOC: Sorry for the shortness/earliness of this post! Got a last minute invite to a Memorial Day party and won't be home at the scheduled time. CLASS HAS OFFICIALLY STARTED! Feel free to join at any time, just post as if your student had been here all along unless you want IC consequences for a late arrival. For question 1, Norman is asking for a similarity/difference between conjuration and transformation, and/or a scenario where one or the other branch would be useful. We'll move on in ABOUT 24 HOURS.

Sage quite liked the sound of rain and, particularly, the smell of it. The latter sometimes made it hard for her to focus, for irritating reasons, but today was not one of those times thanks to the bread and butter that was her Hogwarts career - Transfiguration. The subject was only made better by being held on the upper floors too, though today that perk was a little less important since looking out the window got you nothing more than an abundance of another shade of grey. Still, Sage had situated herself by the window as always and did quietly hope for a flash of lightning during the lesson. Any wizarding fireworks had nothing on those provided by nature.

Flexing and relaxing her tongue while waiting for the lesson to begin, the Slytherin almost found herself enjoying the slimy texture beneath her tongue. Perhaps because it was an indication that the finish line was near so she could literally taste her victory... Was the source of this texture and flavor the source of certain consternations? Denying her participation in certain activities she kept girlishly fantasizing about and feeling more petty and bitter by the moment that she just could not take the risk for a potential setback? Yes, yes it was...but it would be worth it.

Buttons. Right. Buttons in context with conjuration and transformation. The sixth year's thoughts easily honed in on a few concept but...perhaps because she was feeling particularly important this morning...was not particularly inclined to raise her hand. She did, after all, have a certain advantage when it came to knowledge of transformation that Professor Carton was very familiar with so there really was no urge to prove her knowledge. Same, mostly, went for conjuration though without the intimate connection she had compared to transformation. Ultimately, Sage decided that she did have something to offer that may just fuel the number one Transfiguration student narrative her mind had fixated on. Thus, up went her hand along with her posture - which was now impeccably straight and proper.

"Despite being considered the most basic and first branches of Transfiguration we learn at Hogwarts, Transformation is arguably the most complex with three sub-branches, four if you consider general Transformation as its own branch, to its name. Those branches being Trans-Species Transformation, Switches, and Human Transfiguration."

Ary was in the process of adjusting his books and writing materials on his desk to his liking when Bry came in. He watched her greet Carton then as she came towards him. He gave her a warm smile and briefly squeezed her hand in return. “Maybe we’re turning them into plates or something.” It was a wild suggestion but stranger things have been known to happen. They’d find out soon enough, right? After all, Carton was moving things along now.

Despite being familiar with the branches of Transfiguration, Aryan made notes diligently. One day he might have a brain fart and these notes would come in handy. The two branches that they were going to focus on today were difficult ones in Ary’s opinion. Then again, Transfiguration wasn’t one of his stronger subjects. “Conjuration is basically making something appear just like that… out of thin air, as it’s commonly put. Transformation is making something into another, human or object.”

Rainy days were not Ezra's favorite, but if any day was gonna be a rainy one, it might as well be a day when he had lessons and would be cooped up inside most of the day anyway. So he wasn't too bothered by the weather, even if the sound of the rain and thunder did occasionally drag his attention toward the window and the view outside.

The sad, gloomy, grey view. Meh.

Anyway. What were they talking about?

Transformation and conjuration. Right, right.

He raised his hand. "One of the ways they're similar is their complexity. There are a few spells that are easier to master in both categories, but most of them are more advanced, and if you're not careful and focusing properly, the object you're trying to conjure or transform might only be half-done, which could be pretty bad." So definitely not something to mess around with for fun.

That smile from Ary, it only made her heart soar app the more. And though the squeeze to her hand was brief, it was enough to motivate her even more. "That could be interesting," Bry nodded. The interesting part being if she actually managed to pull it off. If that's even what the lesson was about.

Conjuration and Transformation. Yep, this third year was taking all the notes! There wasn't anyway she would be taking any chances. Transfiguration wasn't the easiest class but she really enjoyed it and worked hard at it. "They are different because with conjuration you are making something appear when there wasn't anything there before... Only certain things can't be conjured like food. Transformation is taking something you already have and turning it into something else." This was all said while her hand was still in the air.

SPOILER!!: Individual replies ^_^

Quote:

Originally Posted by sweetpinkpixie

Sage quite liked the sound of rain and, particularly, the smell of it. The latter sometimes made it hard for her to focus, for irritating reasons, but today was not one of those times thanks to the bread and butter that was her Hogwarts career - Transfiguration. The subject was only made better by being held on the upper floors too, though today that perk was a little less important since looking out the window got you nothing more than an abundance of another shade of grey. Still, Sage had situated herself by the window as always and did quietly hope for a flash of lightning during the lesson. Any wizarding fireworks had nothing on those provided by nature.

Flexing and relaxing her tongue while waiting for the lesson to begin, the Slytherin almost found herself enjoying the slimy texture beneath her tongue. Perhaps because it was an indication that the finish line was near so she could literally taste her victory... Was the source of this texture and flavor the source of certain consternations? Denying her participation in certain activities she kept girlishly fantasizing about and feeling more petty and bitter by the moment that she just could not take the risk for a potential setback? Yes, yes it was...but it would be worth it.

Buttons. Right. Buttons in context with conjuration and transformation. The sixth year's thoughts easily honed in on a few concept but...perhaps because she was feeling particularly important this morning...was not particularly inclined to raise her hand. She did, after all, have a certain advantage when it came to knowledge of transformation that Professor Carton was very familiar with so there really was no urge to prove her knowledge. Same, mostly, went for conjuration though without the intimate connection she had compared to transformation. Ultimately, Sage decided that she did have something to offer that may just fuel the number one Transfiguration student narrative her mind had fixated on. Thus, up went her hand along with her posture - which was now impeccably straight and proper.

"Despite being considered the most basic and first branches of Transfiguration we learn at Hogwarts, Transformation is arguably the most complex with three sub-branches, four if you consider general Transformation as its own branch, to its name. Those branches being Trans-Species Transformation, Switches, and Human Transfiguration."

Out of the corner of his eye, Norman noticed Ransom-Kruus’s hand in the air. He nodded in approval of her answer, smiling slightly. “Excellent point, Miss Ransom-Kruus,” he replied. “I agree with you on the complexity of Transformation, both for the wide variety of spells it encompasses, and for the complexity of some of the sub-branches themselves, Namely, Trans-species Transformation and Human Transfiguration.”

Quote:

Originally Posted by FearlessLeader19

Ary was in the process of adjusting his books and writing materials on his desk to his liking when Bry came in. He watched her greet Carton then as she came towards him. He gave her a warm smile and briefly squeezed her hand in return. “Maybe we’re turning them into plates or something.” It was a wild suggestion but stranger things have been known to happen. They’d find out soon enough, right? After all, Carton was moving things along now.

Despite being familiar with the branches of Transfiguration, Aryan made notes diligently. One day he might have a brain fart and these notes would come in handy. The two branches that they were going to focus on today were difficult ones in Ary’s opinion. Then again, Transfiguration wasn’t one of his stronger subjects. “Conjuration is basically making something appear just like that… out of thin air, as it’s commonly put. Transformation is making something into another, human or object.”

Atreyu-Rehman’s hand was the next one Norman saw. The boy’s answer received an approving nod. “Very good,” he replied. “Thank you for providing the definitions of the two branches, Mr. Atreyu-Rehman.”

Quote:

Originally Posted by AlwaysSnapesGirl

Rainy days were not Ezra's favorite, but if any day was gonna be a rainy one, it might as well be a day when he had lessons and would be cooped up inside most of the day anyway. So he wasn't too bothered by the weather, even if the sound of the rain and thunder did occasionally drag his attention toward the window and the view outside.

The sad, gloomy, grey view. Meh.

Anyway. What were they talking about?

Transformation and conjuration. Right, right.

He raised his hand. "One of the ways they're similar is their complexity. There are a few spells that are easier to master in both categories, but most of them are more advanced, and if you're not careful and focusing properly, the object you're trying to conjure or transform might only be half-done, which could be pretty bad." So definitely not something to mess around with for fun.

Norman was almost certain he noticed Hensley looking out the window every so often. Was the boy paying attention? It would seem so… good! “Too right you are, Mr. Hensley,” he replied with a nod. “It’s always wise to act with caution, no matter which branch of transfiguration you’re using.”

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kolyander

That smile from Ary, it only made her heart soar app the more. And though the squeeze to her hand was brief, it was enough to motivate her even more. "That could be interesting," Bry nodded. The interesting part being if she actually managed to pull it off. If that's even what the lesson was about.

Conjuration and Transformation. Yep, this third year was taking all the notes! There wasn't anyway she would be taking any chances. Transfiguration wasn't the easiest class but she really enjoyed it and worked hard at it. "They are different because with conjuration you are making something appear when there wasn't anything there before... Only certain things can't be conjured like food. Transformation is taking something you already have and turning it into something else." This was all said while her hand was still in the air.

Noticing Paton’s hand in the air, Norman called on the young Slytherin. Her answer earned an approving nod. “I’m glad you made that distinction, Miss Paton,” he said. “Sometimes you may not have an object to transform, in which case, you’d have to rely on conjuration.”

Norman glanced around the room in search of more hands in the air. Seeing none, he took that as his cue to move on. “Excellent answers, everyone! To recap…” he addressed the group. As he waved his wand, the students’ answers appeared written on the blackboard behind him.

After allowing the students time to copy the information in their notes, he continued, “In a few minutes, we’ll be practicing two spells that produce the same object. One is a transformation spell, the other a conjuration one. Based on what you know about the two branches, I’d like you to form a theory. Which spell do you think will be easier to cast, and why? Think about potential challenges that each branch could present, and hold on to your theory. You’ll be revisiting it.”

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blackboard

Transformation

• 4 sub-branches: general transformation, switching, trans-species transformation, human transfiguration
• Changes an object into something else
• Must have an object to transform

Conjuration

• Makes something appear out of thin air
• Can be performed without an existing object

Both

• Include complex spells
• Should be practiced with caution

OOC: Question 2 is up. For this, Norman is asking the students to consider two spells that produce the same object (one conjuration, one transformation) and guess which spell will be easier to cast. You’ll have ABOUT 22 HOURS for this one! As always, catching up is allowed.

With notes appearing on the board, Ary proceeded to make his notes. He had already had a suspicion of which branch of Transfiguration was more difficult than the other. He wasn’t sure of his answer, of course, but he did have an idea that could back up his theory. It was only after thinking through his answer as best as he could did the Alytherin raise his hand.

“I think that Conjuration spells will be more difficult because that branch requires that we make something appear completely. But with Transformation spells, there’s already an object that we can work on to alter its appearance.” Yup, that was his reasoning.

Slimy texture slimy texture slimy texture slimy texture slimy texture slimy texture slimy texture.

Sometimes hyper focusing on it was the only thing that kept her grounded and dismissive of certain other distractions. It also, like this moment now, made her swallow rather thickly and quickly...which had its own complications but thankfully nothing was swallowed that ought not be. Eyes on the prize, Sage. Eyes on the prize.

Feeling entirely too pleased with herself, Sage provided her undivided attention to Professor Carlton as the lecture continued and immediately knew which branch she found easier than the other...though she supposed that she may be an anomaly with her presence. Though, to be fair, she often considered it to be akin to some finding Charms easier then Transfiguration. Everyone had their magical preferences and strengths AND the important thing was discovering and understanding your own.

Taking a moment to, briefly, consider her peers' responses thus far, the Slytherin's hand shot up once again. "There is Avis, which is a conjuration spell, and Avifors which is a transformation spell," she shared with several bright twinkles to her vigilant gaze. "While conjuration is, technically, the more difficult branch since, as was pointed out, you are seemingly creating something from nothing and expelling more magic to complete the process ... I personally have found the visualization process for transformation to make it the branch a little more difficult for me personally. I can more easily visualize a bird appearing out of thin air, but will often over analyze the intricacies of what it would take for a button, for example, to turn into a bird. Will the head stretch forth from the middle of the button or will the rim stretch to accommodate for the shape, for example."

Taking notes was important. So was the pink button that she still held in her free hand. The faster she jotted down what was written on the board, the quicker she would be able to get back to checking out this button, yes?

Anyhow, that second question. Bry had heard what it was and she had started to give it some thought. But she couldn't really decide which branch of transfiguration was more difficult. Both were tough for different reasons. Ary made a great point about and she agreed with it. Sage also made a really good point and got her thinking about something that didn't exactly have to do with the question but maybe it sort of did? "Both can be quite difficult. I think it really depends on the spell you're working on as well and what that moment requires. If you're calm and clear headed it might be much easier than say if you're frightened and trying to cast the same spells." Like how she had been in previous weeks. Her focus had been even worse than usual and she was so sad that she had found herself having the worst time learning new spells. Even casting ones she already knew had been troublesome at times. Now that she was in a much happier place, she was seeing clearly again. Annnnnnd yet.... "But Professor... How does a spell like that work? Ones that require us to really visualize what we want, color and size and whatever else? How does it understand I want one thing and someone beside me casting the very same thing wants something completely different looking?" Did that even make sense??

Aurora tried hard in Transfiguration, she really did, but there was something about the subject that didn’t sit quite right in her brain and it left her with the tendency to become distracted by anything and everything. She had arrived at the classroom on time (just) and had found a seat without really acknowledging who was already there leaving her somewhere in amongst the crowd of students.

The first question had gone by unanswered by the blonde, instead opting to listen to the answers of her fellow students whilst absentmindedly doodling hearts and flowers on her parchment. It wasn’t until Professor Carton spoke up again that she realised she had written nothing of note and so hastily scribbled down something about conjuration being objects appearing out of thin air and transformation being to create something out of something else. At least that was what her understanding of the two was.

As for the second question, now that the fifth year had switched on her brain a little, she could contribute her own opinion to the lesson. “What if you find both branches equally difficult Professor?” A bit of a cop-out answer maybe but there was nothing she found easy about the subject. “I suppose if I had to pick one it would be conjuration because then I have to really use my concentration to develop something from literally nothing. But then again I guess there’s more that could go wrong with transformation. If I go wrong with conjuration and nothing comes about it then there’s no harm done but if I accidentally transform something to something else and I make a mistake then I could harm that thing. Like once I tried Piscifors on a pinecone but I didn’t do it right and it turned into a sort of pinecone fish hybrid with a tail but a spiky head and it tried to swim away but it couldn’t and I felt awful” Not that anyone had asked but it was still traumatic for a much younger Aurora to witness.

In other words, Transfiguration was hard.

Kion remained studious during the lesson. The discussion came to the difference of conjuration and transfiguration. He thought it would be pretty simple, with conjuring bringing something into existence and transfiguration simply changing something that's already there.

Kion then took notes on the board with the information presented when the tip of his quill broke... well, he always had a spare as he continued writing. Once the next question came, he waited until his turn "I think it depends on spell you're conjuring, if it's something like Aguamenti, that's pretty easy. But Conjuring overall is more advanced in general because you're bringing something to appear, whilst Transfiguration you're changing the property of what's already there." That was how he saw it, at least.

SPOILER!!: Individual replies ^_^

Quote:

Originally Posted by FearlessLeader19

With notes appearing on the board, Ary proceeded to make his notes. He had already had a suspicion of which branch of Transfiguration was more difficult than the other. He wasn’t sure of his answer, of course, but he did have an idea that could back up his theory. It was only after thinking through his answer as best as he could did the Alytherin raise his hand.

“I think that Conjuration spells will be more difficult because that branch requires that we make something appear completely. But with Transformation spells, there’s already an object that we can work on to alter its appearance.” Yup, that was his reasoning.

Norman was hardly surprised to hear Atreyu-Rehman thought the conjuration spell would be more difficult. She nodded approvingly. “Sound reasoning, Mr. Atreyu-Rehman,” he replied. “Many people find conjuration difficult for that very reason.”

Quote:

Originally Posted by sweetpinkpixie

Slimy texture slimy texture slimy texture slimy texture slimy texture slimy texture slimy texture.

Sometimes hyper focusing on it was the only thing that kept her grounded and dismissive of certain other distractions. It also, like this moment now, made her swallow rather thickly and quickly...which had its own complications but thankfully nothing was swallowed that ought not be. Eyes on the prize, Sage. Eyes on the prize.

Feeling entirely too pleased with herself, Sage provided her undivided attention to Professor Carlton as the lecture continued and immediately knew which branch she found easier than the other...though she supposed that she may be an anomaly with her presence. Though, to be fair, she often considered it to be akin to some finding Charms easier then Transfiguration. Everyone had their magical preferences and strengths AND the important thing was discovering and understanding your own.

Taking a moment to, briefly, consider her peers' responses thus far, the Slytherin's hand shot up once again. "There is Avis, which is a conjuration spell, and Avifors which is a transformation spell," she shared with several bright twinkles to her vigilant gaze. "While conjuration is, technically, the more difficult branch since, as was pointed out, you are seemingly creating something from nothing and expelling more magic to complete the process ... I personally have found the visualization process for transformation to make it the branch a little more difficult for me personally. I can more easily visualize a bird appearing out of thin air, but will often over analyze the intricacies of what it would take for a button, for example, to turn into a bird. Will the head stretch forth from the middle of the button or will the rim stretch to accommodate for the shape, for example."

Ransom-Kruus’s theory went in a completely different direction, which Norman was pleased to hear. There were no wrong answers here; the idea was to have the students form a hypothesis which could be tested later. He nodded, smiling slightly. “Interesting observation, Miss Ransom-Kruus,” he said. “Let’s see if that theory holds true for today’s activity.”

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kolyander

Taking notes was important. So was the pink button that she still held in her free hand. The faster she jotted down what was written on the board, the quicker she would be able to get back to checking out this button, yes?

Anyhow, that second question. Bry had heard what it was and she had started to give it some thought. But she couldn't really decide which branch of transfiguration was more difficult. Both were tough for different reasons. Ary made a great point about and she agreed with it. Sage also made a really good point and got her thinking about something that didn't exactly have to do with the question but maybe it sort of did? "Both can be quite difficult. I think it really depends on the spell you're working on as well and what that moment requires. If you're calm and clear headed it might be much easier than say if you're frightened and trying to cast the same spells." Like how she had been in previous weeks. Her focus had been even worse than usual and she was so sad that she had found herself having the worst time learning new spells. Even casting ones she already knew had been troublesome at times. Now that she was in a much happier place, she was seeing clearly again. Annnnnnd yet.... "But Professor... How does a spell like that work? Ones that require us to really visualize what we want, color and size and whatever else? How does it understand I want one thing and someone beside me casting the very same thing wants something completely different looking?" Did that even make sense??

Norman listened to Paton’s theory, nodding along in places. “Excellent point, Miss Paton,” he replied. “One’s emotional state can affect the difficulty of a spell, regardless of the type.” He considered her question for a moment before answering, “It’s more to do with the wand understanding you than the spell. Spells in and of themselves are not sentient; it’s your mind and your wand working together to make them happen. I don’t claim to be an expert in wandlore, but I know that wands are matched to their owners based on some level of mutual understanding. As long as you’re using your own wand, it will understand what you’re trying to do. This applies to anyone casting the same spell.”

Was that clear? She glanced at her, searching for any sign of confusion.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lottiepot

Aurora tried hard in Transfiguration, she really did, but there was something about the subject that didn’t sit quite right in her brain and it left her with the tendency to become distracted by anything and everything. She had arrived at the classroom on time (just) and had found a seat without really acknowledging who was already there leaving her somewhere in amongst the crowd of students.

The first question had gone by unanswered by the blonde, instead opting to listen to the answers of her fellow students whilst absentmindedly doodling hearts and flowers on her parchment. It wasn’t until Professor Carton spoke up again that she realised she had written nothing of note and so hastily scribbled down something about conjuration being objects appearing out of thin air and transformation being to create something out of something else. At least that was what her understanding of the two was.

As for the second question, now that the fifth year had switched on her brain a little, she could contribute her own opinion to the lesson. “What if you find both branches equally difficult Professor?” A bit of a cop-out answer maybe but there was nothing she found easy about the subject. “I suppose if I had to pick one it would be conjuration because then I have to really use my concentration to develop something from literally nothing. But then again I guess there’s more that could go wrong with transformation. If I go wrong with conjuration and nothing comes about it then there’s no harm done but if I accidentally transform something to something else and I make a mistake then I could harm that thing. Like once I tried Piscifors on a pinecone but I didn’t do it right and it turned into a sort of pinecone fish hybrid with a tail but a spiky head and it tried to swim away but it couldn’t and I felt awful” Not that anyone had asked but it was still traumatic for a much younger Aurora to witness.

In other words, Transfiguration was hard.

Here was another outside the box theory. Norman listened, nodding approvingly. For the record, he didn’t consider Ackerly’s answer a cop-out. “All valid points, Miss Ackerly,” he replied. “Both conjuration and transformation present their own difficulties.” He would be interested to know which one she thought was more difficult following today’s activity,

Quote:

Originally Posted by Charely Potter

Kion remained studious during the lesson. The discussion came to the difference of conjuration and transfiguration. He thought it would be pretty simple, with conjuring bringing something into existence and transfiguration simply changing something that's already there.

Kion then took notes on the board with the information presented when the tip of his quill broke... well, he always had a spare as he continued writing. Once the next question came, he waited until his turn "I think it depends on spell you're conjuring, if it's something like Aguamenti, that's pretty easy. But Conjuring overall is more advanced in general because you're bringing something to appear, whilst Transfiguration you're changing the property of what's already there." That was how he saw it, at least.

And another student who thought conjuration would be more difficult. Norman nodded approvingly. “Reasonable thinking, Mr. Ingebretson,” he replied.

Seeing no more hands in the air, Norman addressed the class again. “Excellent theories! There are no wrong answers; it was simply a question to get you thinking for our next activity. For this, we’ll be comparing two spells which produce the same result, one conjuration and one transformation. We’re starting with the transformation spell…”

He paused to allow time for the students to refocus before going on, “The spell in question is Herbifors, pronounced HERB-i-fors. This spell transforms its target into a bunch of flowers and produces a red or purple light when performed correctly. To cast, visualize the type of flowers you want to produce. Point your wand at the intended target, and say the incantation like so…”

He picked up a quill from his desk and, holding it up for the students to see, pointed his wand at it. “Herbifors,” he cast. In an instant, the quill turned into a bouquet of orange chrysanthemums. Setting the flowers aside, he waved his wand at the blackboard, and the spell information appeared.

“Your task is to practice Herbifors on the buttons on your desk. There are plenty in each jar, so don’t worry about taking multiple attempts. Pay attention to any particular difficulties you have with the spell. You have fifteen minutes, starting now!”

OOC: Sorry for the delay, unexpected rl events yesterday. Thanks for sticking with us! The main activity starts here. For this part, your student needs to practice Herbifors on the buttons in the jar on their desk. Group work is allowed, but each person must attempt the spell. Spell attempts do not have to succeed to receive credit. You’ll have AT LEAST 72 HOURS for the main activity; part 2 will go up 24-30 HOURS from now.

After taking the last bit of notes, Kion tucked his quill away as they were now instructed the spell. Herbifors. He thought of it and mouthed the spell without speaking. Then reaching for the jar with the buttons, he took out one. Nearly dropping it on the floor, but he trapped it under his palm before it bounced off the desk.

With a sigh of relief, Kion continued to pronounce the spell,Herbifors. Herbifors. Herbifors. Then you just tap it right? Clearing his throat, he pointed his wand in the direction of the button, "Herbifors," He said. Willing for something to happen.

Obviously everyone had different opinions. Ary would hold onto his because he couldn’t be extra nervous about Conjuration spells. They always made him feel that way. Perhaps this was why relief washed over him when Carton announced that they would start off with the Transformation spell.

“HERB-i-fors. HERB-i-fors. Herbifors. Herbifors.” Ary loved it when incantations were so simple; this boosted his confidence. Not bothering to practice something as simple as pointing a wand, the third year got right down into the meat of the activity. "Herbifors." Cue a point at the button, the picture of gold marigolds in his head. Sadly, the object remained in its current state. "Herbifors." Point.

During the course of his failures, a break was taken. This helped Ary to regroup and shake off his growing frustrations. Then he was back in action. "Herbifors." Point at the button on his desk, mental picture of the marigold strong and... a flash of purple light later, Ary had half a dozen gold marigolds on his desk.

After casting "Herbifors," Kion imagined a set of flowers he would like to have, before a red light flashed with.. Begonias appearing. He smiled satisfied. The fact that he managed to do it the first time was great. Though since he was a N.E.W.T student, he knew he'd have to learn it wordlessly as well.

So carefully, Kion set the set of flowers in the empty jar, before using the other button to practice. He tried visualizing Bougainvilleas, they'd look great with the Begonias. He could give them to Maria or set for decoration incase she didn't like them. Herbifors.... Well, no luck there with just the wand movement. He tried again wordlessly.. and again..

From his place at the front of the classroom, Norman watched as the students set to work. He saw Atreyu-Rehman successfully produce a batch of marigolds and smiled encouragingly. “Excellent work, Mr. Atreyu-Rehman,” he said. Elsewhere, he noticed Ingebretson’s begonias. It appeared that he was attempting to do the spell noverbally as well. “You too, Mr. Ingebretson,” he said quietly so as not to break the boy’s concentration.


After a few more minutes, Norman checked his watch to see that the allotted fifteen minutes were winding down. He raised a hand for quiet. “Your attention please,” he addressed the group, waiting a few moments for the students to focus on him. “You can continue your practice in a minute, but first we have another spell to learn. That spell is Orchideous, pronounced or-KID-ee-us…”

Brandishing his wand, he continued, “This spell conjures a bouquet of flowers, usually pink, although the result depends on the caster’s visualization. To cast, say the incantation and move your wand in an upward line, followed by a counterclockwise half-circle and downward curve like this…” He slowly made the movement with his wand. “The wand movement looks a bit like a flower if done correctly. This spell will produce a pink light, like so…”

He made the flower-like wand shape and cast, “Orchideous!” In an instant, a bunch of orange chrysanthemums, nearly identical to the one he transformed earlier, appeared in his left hand. Setting them aside, he continued, “Practice this spell, and try to produce the same color and type of flowers as you did with Herbifors. It’s alright if it’s not an exact match, but try to get it as close as you can. You have twenty more minutes to practice both spells!”

He aimed his wand at the blackboard, and the spell information appeared on the board behind him:

Quote:

Originally Posted by blackboard

Herbifors
Pronunciation: HERB-i-fors
Wand movement: point at target
Light: red or purple
Use: transforms target into a bunch of flowers

Orchideous
Pronunciation: or-KID-ee-us
Wand movement: upward line, counterclockwise half circle, and downward curve
Light: pink
Use: conjures flowers

OOC: You’re doing great! There’s still ABOUT 48 HOURS left for this activity.

The brightest of smiles formed on her young face. It wasn't often that she made an excellent point that came across clearly the first time. What also came across clearly and needed no further explanation, Professor Carton's response to her own question. Which made complete sense the moment he said it. Because obviously her wand was matched to her so it understand what she was thinking and feeling, therefore it only made sense that that's how the spells worked! Cue the lightbulb going on in her head and her eyes shining brightly as it all clicked together for her. Double thumbs up, Professor! She got it!

Her understanding this even more in depth now could only mean that she gave Aryan the brightest of smiles now too. Bry straightened herself up in her seat and paid as close attention as she could as Carton demonstrated Herbifors. It looked easy enough. The wand movement being only to point at the intended target. The incantation, well that wasn't so difficult either. "HERB-i-fors.. HERB-i-fors.." Yep, the third year even paused for a second to listen to how Ary was saying it. Content that she was indeed saying it properly she went ahead to repeat it a few more times while laying that pink button she had been holding this whole time down on the desk.

The idea was that it would be easier if she used a pink button and visualized pink flowers. Pink roses to be exact. Aiming her wand at the button, Bry focused on nothing but beautiful light pink roses. "Herbifors!" The first rey didn't get her anywhere but that was okay. All she had to do was picture the roses more clearly, know exactly what she wanted...

"Herbifors!" There was a streak of bright purple light and right there where the pink button had been was now several light pink roses. Bryony squealed in delight at her own accomplishment.

“Thanks, professor,’’ Ary replied. As confident as he might have been for that activity, he wasn’t feeling this way at all for what was ahead. Try as he might to dig up some of that confidence, it all seemed to have buried itself deep and stubbornly refused to come out. But hey, at least Bry seemed to have hers up and about as she too was successful with the first spell!

As Carton carried on, Ary absently prodded at the marigolds on his desk. Maybe he could try conjuring a bunch of the same sort of flowers. Or should he try to conjure something smaller since it might be easier? Nope, nevermind. It was confirmed that he should attempt to conjure the exact flowers as before.

“Or-KID-ee-us. Or-KID-ee-us. Orchideous. Orchideous, Orchideous.” With the simple-ish incantation out of the way, Aryan turned his attention to the wand movement: an upward line, counterclockwise half circle followed by a downward curve. After a minute of repeating the movement, he began to see that Carton was right: it did sort of resemble a flower.

Vera wasn't sure where her vocal chords had gone off to, but she WAS paying attention still at all of the questions and the background for their activity for the day. Example? Well while she couldn't have contributed to what each individual law for conjuration vs transfiguration was like a chunk of her classmates, had she been quicker on the hand draw she would have added that it was helpful to have the ability to conjure something if you were in a bare, desolate location with nothing to transfigure. Or if you were just unable to get an item you already had in your hand looking like what you needed it to turn into, having the ability to try conjuration instead could help in a life or death situation. There were certainly perks to both types.

As for which was more difficult? Well she found herself inclined to agree with Sage, even if it wasn't the majority answer. Conjuration was hard creating something from nothing, sure. But at least it was easier to picture an elephant without comparision to another item which made focusing much easier. Whereas if she were trying to transfigure a blanket into an elephant, it was hard to isolate the ideas of a BLANKET being an ELEPHANT, y'know? Either way, she'd distracted herself with sudden picturing of an elephant in a blanket and was unable to offer that observation either. Oops.

Now! For practice time. And of course they were starting with the transfiguration spell version. Recentering her attention, Ve started with practicing the incantation though as a seventh year it wasn't one she hadn't attempted before. "herbifors. herbifors. herbifors." The word herb was a weird one, wasn't it? She got stuck on that for a second before continuing. "herbifors, herbifors." Content she was saying it correctly, Ve pointed the wand at a button in front of her and combined. "herbifors!" ... She hadn't stopped picturing the button though so while a sad single flower appeared, it had strange holes in it instead of the usual middle. With a grimace, she pushed it to the side and grabbed another button. This time, she practiced pointing her wand so she felt exactly where she would need the tip of it to go. Once that was memorized, she closed her eyes and pictured a single yellow carnation. "herbifors!"

Ve peeked one eye open and was pleased to see it had been successful, though perhaps a little sad looking still. She considered going for another button, but then instructions were started for the next spell so she abandoned the idea and instead focused on the conjuration spell.

Orchideous. Deciding that since conjuration was generally a little easier for her anyways, she'd go ahead and try it with a non-verbal. Once they were released for practice, she practiced the incantation a few times out loud first. "Orchideous, orchideous, orchideous." Satisfied she was fully focused on the word, she tried it in her head a few times - focusing on nothing but it. Then it was wand movement practice, which she did a few times. Finally, she combined the pieces, trying to picture a yellow carnation. It took 6 or 7 attempts, especially since she wasn't speaking it aloud, but around the 8th go she could see a flower had appeared on her desk. It was... much better looking than it's transfigured counter part, but she was pleased nonetheless.

Since she'd gotten some success for the main activity, Vera decided to go back to practicing herbifors.

Less observation and more empirical evidence, Sage decided it was not in her best interest to nitpick and press her point. Especially with them moving on to the best part of any Transfiguration lesson - actual spellwork. Herbifors, which would surely mean that Orchideous would be its conjuration partner, was not a new spell to her but she was never above some practice and honing her herbology adjacent skillset. Nothing could really match actual flora when it came to potions and other such endeavors in her opinion, but no shade to their aesthetic qualities. Though..aesthetics weren't really what were on her mind at the moment, rather she was pushing her ambitions to another level in terms of the quality of her transfigured flowers and one way to know for certain if she had nailed the quality was to create a flower with an accurate and potent smell.

Fellow Hogwartians...Sage would apologize for what was about to happen but she was not even the least bit sorry.

Arranging her buttons in a neat row in before of her, the Slytherin pulled one front and center and readied her wand. There was absolutely no way that this was enough material to produce the image that had solidified in her thoughts but she would give it a whirl nonetheless. Chances were she was overthinking it and as well as being over analytical but c'est la vie. Straightening her posture and squaring her shoulders, the sixth year pointed her wand right at the center of her button and spoke sharply. "Herbifors." The button doubled...tripled in size immediately and began to almost bubble as if it were made of molten lava before tendrils stretched out from five locations and curled to form the petals. The holds in the center of the button morphed and twisted into one singular circular opening nestled on a lower level than the petals and in another few breathes Sage was left with a palm sized red flower seemingly covered in white creamy polkadots. She couldn't help but feel a twinge of disappointment as the actual flower was massive, largest in the world according to muggle herbologists, but she really did not expect anything more considering the materials - or else it would have been a very flimsy flower and not at all meeting her personal criteria. "Huuuuuuuu," she sighed as she picked it up and cupped it in her hand, the disappointment fueled by the lack of aroma already - it OUGHT to be obvious without her needing to waft or stick her nose inside. "Ugh," a lament as she set her failure aside and pushed the remaining buttons into position - more buttons, more material, better quality final product! "Herbifors," she repeated, her eyes glaring at the buttons as if they were Solomon Duck, and as expected the pile began to morph and melt together...soon evolving into the final product with the same flare as the single button had until... "YES!" Sage gagged, the flower not only of proper size but also with the potent aroma that was causing her eyes to water and her last meal take an encore.

The monstrous red flower now taking up the entirety of her desk, Sage pointed her wand to herself and performed a quick Bubble Head Charm so she could breathe. Really, the others ought to do the same if the smell was bothering them too.

Now, could she repeat such perfection through conjuration? She was confident that she could eventually...but she had never really conjured anything sizeable before.

"Orchideous," she commanded, her wand pointing at what space was left on the table (though what she intended to do if she actually managed to conjure something of the same size...she did not know because it was NOT going to fit on the desk). A sickenly sweet pink light erupted from her wand and balled up on the desk before her for a split second before it gave way to...not what she had intended at all. "Oi, no one invited you, Gloxinia," she chastised her creation. Sure, there was a kind of similarity if you squinted, turned your head sideways, and only focused on the somewhat foreboding tunnel down on both blossoms...but no, not even close. "Bleh, Evanesco," she grumbled.

Aurora might have struggled with Transfiguration but it didn’t mean that she wouldn’t be able to waffle her way through her answers to make it sound like she knew what she was talking about. Moving onto the practical side of the lesson presented itself with far greater difficulties. The Ravenclaw wasn’t able to hide behind her vocal detours but instead how to show her capabilities.

She was really working on them, honest.

There wouldn’t be a problem with visualising a flower for she appreciated the beauty in every single one. Except maybe that drummed up further problems for now she had to decide which flower was worthy of her affections today. She loved the symbolism behind roses and during the summer months would frequently be found tying daisy chains. Her Aunt Kat often decorated her wedding cakes with violas and carnations which always looked beautiful but sunflowers actively described who she was as a person.. with the exception of NOT being vertically challenged.

After much too long internal deliberation, by which time Professor Carton was already explaining the second part of the practical, did the fifteen year old settle on sunflowers. She picked up the jar and sprinkled a couple onto her desk, observing the size and colour and figuring out whether it would be easier to transform one that looked more like her intended result. Like the pale yellow one that had concealed itself beneath the pile. She pointed her wand at the button, squeezed her eyes shut and rather intensely visualised a bunch of sunflowers. “Herbofors” she spoke clearly, reopening her eyes to.. nothing.

Her eyes scanned to the board. Wrong pronunciation. She moved to try again when an awful stench wafted its way through the classroom and right up her sensitive nostrils.

“Professor! I think something has DIED!!!” It was hard to tell whether her eyes were streaming at the thought of something dying or whether it was the smell affecting her retinas but there WAS a rather horrified expression on the Ravenclaws face. Now had she been less engrossed by the thought that a carnivorous plant was running rampage around the classroom, she might’ve taken the second to glance to her left and spot the culprit performing a bubble-head charm on herself. Alas, Aurora was not smart enough to think of such a thing.