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Located down one end of the first floor corridor is the History of Magic classroom. It is simply an ordinary classroom, like one would expect, student desks neatly lined up in rows with the professor's desk located in the front of the room with a blackboard behind it.
Today's lesson is held late afternoon in the middle of autumn, the sun beginning to hang low in the sky with rays of light filtering in through the classroom windows. Professor McCormack is found leaning against the side of his desk, waiting for his students to arrive. Come in and take a seat, there are no assigned ones here yet. But Professor McCormack has taken a note from one of his old mentors as he knows the name of exactly one student, so please follow the instructions on the board.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Blackboard
Please take a seat and write your name on the name tag provided on your desk.
ooc: Class has begun! Please do not post your late arrival unless you'd like to deal with the consequences. Just act like you've been here all along! Please familiarize yourself with classroom rules before posting. Thanks!
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Salem Witch Trials, hmm? Mo shifted uncomfortably in his seat, suddenly aware of how cranky he was being. Must be too early in the day, but Merlin knew there was no reason to glare at the ickles or at the professor.
Who he had failed to greet. Awesome.
Mo raised his hand and offered a cautious smile to the professor. Hey, there, professor man. Don't be sore, okay? "Although well over 150 people were ultimately arrested for witchcraft, and many of them imprisoned, there were 19 men and women who were actually hung for that so-called crime. And one was pressed to death by stones. Or at least that's what the Muggle history books record."
Kace smiled and was starting to like this dude even more. He was approving of his first apperance. Then he saw him go over to the door and he gave him a quizzical look. The professor next, slammed the door and that jolted him. He almost jumped out of his seat. Whatever tiredness he was feeling that was gone.
He knew this professor was serious. Then he was talking about the Salem Witch Trials? Hmm...what did Kace know about it? He raised his hand and gave it a shot.. "Professor i know 19 men and woman were involved and they were carted off the the Gallow Hills to be executed with stones." He remembered that people back then did not like witchcraft at all.
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Wait a minute. Hold the owl!! Did that man just tell Bart Simpson Maroon to sit up front? Bart never sat up front not even for cool professors and this lamo wanted him to sit up front. HUH! Grabbing his things not so nicely and possibly hitting Kevin with his bag hard on accident he turned on his heel and huffed the entire way to the front and turned to head to the stupid desk that the lame professor told him to go. No one put baby Bart in a corner.
He didn't even care to be here anymore, he never cared to be in this stupid boring class, but right now it was worse and his good mood was shot, killed, gone. Did the man know he was a Debbie downer?
When the man started his lesson Bart fought the urge to just head desk. He'd just stare out the window and ignore, because he was just helping his friend with the grey hair. He hadn't done anything wrong. Professor were dumb they never understood him. Now he was on about some stupid Salem Witch hunt or trials whatever. He didn't even know what a Salem was. Maybe he should go back to whatever it was.
Braith turned and gave the next girl to walk in a bright smile, noting her demeanor and good manners, though he did have to chuckle at her greeting. ”Good afternoon!” he returned the greeting just as enthusiastically, wondering if she perhaps slept in, throwing her internal clock off. But she seemed positive about class and that was what was important.
“Good afternoon class and welcome to History of Magic!” he greeted his students enthusiastically. He loved his area of expertise and wanted to bring that passion to his subject, hoping even just one person could benefit from that. “My name is Braith McCormack and I will be your professor this term.” Will he be after that? That remained to be seen.
Sliding up from his leaning position at the side of his desk to sit at the edge of it, Braith looked out into the sea of young faces. “For today’s lesson, we are going to start off by discussing what many in our circles consider to be one of the worst moments in Wizarding history.” He paused for dramatic effect. Did they know what he was referring to? No, he wasn’t going to make them guess, just think about that statement for a moment. Once he felt his words sunk in enough, he continued. “And that would be the Salem Witch Trials. But before we talk about it, I would like to know what you already know.” As in facts. Most of them should be at least familiar with some part of the events, he thought, but it was covered in their textbooks as well if they needed a reference. “So, I’d like each of you to tell us one thing you know about the Salem Witch Trials, or even Wizarding persecution in general.” Too gruesome for the younger ones? They'll get over it.
Ooh. Emma knew a lot about this one, she and her parents had discussed it recently over the holidays back home. She raised her hand solemnly, smiling halfheartedly at the professor when called upon. "The Salem witch trials occurred in colonial Massachusetts between 1692 and 1693, and there were at least twenty people executed. It was awful."
Totally awful. So many people were murdered without real reason. Emma remembered being in tears the first time she had heard about the Salem Witch trials, and some nights she still had nightmares.
Awful. Simply awful. Why did they have to study this?
So the seventh year had barely made it in. Well, at least he was here. He was digging thought his bag for his stuff for class when the door slammed shut. He jumpped in his seat not expecting it.
It was the professor who slammed it. He looked since the class was starting, Salem witch trails. Well he raised his hand "They accused anyone who seem out of the ordinary. including odd illnesses and Epileptic Fits" He nodded after he had finished his thoughts.
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Days of Potter 2023:___________________________ Which Bertie Botts Flavour Are You? You are Bread!
"Yes Professor," Ana groaned, almost falling out of her seat as she reached down to pick up her textbook, her back cracking as she sat back up and gratefully dropped it on her desk. She couldn't wait for this day to be over.
She jumped, badly startled when the door was slammed shut by the Professor, having been paying more attention to Terry than to what was going on around her. It didn't make her feel any more alert though and she was still just as likely to fall asleep as she had been before.
Oh. Ana knew an answer for this. YAY to knowledge.
She raised her hand and said, "It was believed at the time that if a person could recite the Lord's Prayer that they were innocent of witchcraft as no-one who was consorting with the devil would physically be able to say it. The problem with this method though was that any tiny mistake, pause or stammer would be taken as evidence of guilt even if the accused could finish the prayer." Which was obviously unreasonable as who, innocent of witchcraft or not, could reasonably be expected to not do at least one of those things when they were terrified for their lives, or might even be ill or hallucinating due to the diet of the time.
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Oh.
Well.
This was really awkward, wasn't it?
Cat glanced around for a moment and listened to all the answers. They were awful things. That was an awful time. It took her a moment to think of something she was sure she hadn't already heard and she raised her hand slowly, "One of the tests they used was to tie people to rocks and toss them into the water. If they didn't float back up, they were considered innocent... but they all ended up dying anyway." That one had really stuck with her cause drowning was NOT something she ever wanted to do. Ever.
She was very, very glad that she hadn't been alive then.
Startled from the slamming door, Beverly sat up straighter, her hand on her chest. GEEZ. Did he HAVE to do THAT. Anyway, she was up and alert now. Smoothing her piece of parchment, she readied her quill for note jotting.
One of the worst moments in Wizarding history? Umm...the inability to create a potion that heals all illnesses. That was one. And one she didn't want to focus on. MOVING ON.
Shoving her last train of thought to the back of her head, Beverly thought about the second subject; Salem Witch Trials and even Wizarding persecution. First off, it was certainly something she didn't want to experience.
Bev wanted to mention it had taken place in the States, Massachusetts to be exact. And her second favorite place to visit. But someone beat her to it. The nice thing about this question, though, was that the professor asked for only ONE thing. Phew!
She raised her hand slowly. "Um, some Muggles believed cats were associated with these "witches," especially black ones, and some used it as like, actual fact."
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Alice Fischer, read her nametag. She'd entered the classroom quietly and taken a seat near the front, a good spot from which to observe the new professor. He was... very ordinary. There wasn't much she noticed about him, other than the fact that he said 'Sup, dude' to someone and took two points from her house (did she need to make Bart do laps AGAIN?).
So far, the guy was okay.
And his rank went up for teaching about something with which she wasn't too familiar. "I don't know much about the trials, sir," she admitted immediately after her hand went up, in case he expected better answers from a seventh year. "Did the Muggles in the area maybe think witchcraft was afoot because of the school located there? Salem Witches' Institute? Kids being obvious and stuff? Was it even established at that time?"
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and so i took an axe to a mended fence.___________________.______._________________ __________________________________..____this is why we can't have nice things, darling.
There's some good in this world and it's worth fighting for| LOTR|Whovian|Sherlock Fan
The Salem Witch Trials. So that's what they were going to be discussing about. Sander tried to recall what he had read in the textbooks on the subject. He had visited Salem once and took one of their tours. The tour guide told them the story on what happened there during that period.
Relying on his memory from what he read and what he was told during the guide, Sander raised his hand.
"Even though it was believed that those arrested were believed to be involved in witchcraft and sorcery, it really wasn't the case. Even those who objected to the persecutions and voiced skepticism about the truth of the girl's accusations were also arrested." Sander paused as he tried to recall some of the names of the people.
Then two names popped into his mind, and he continued, "The arrest of Martha Corey and Rebecca Nurse caused major unrest in the community because both Martha and Rebecca were devout members of the church they worshipped in. So many believed that there was no way, they would be connected with witchcraft in any way," Sander concluded his answer.
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YAWNN. Did him slamming the door supposed to look scary or professional or something? Well, it didn't impress Tag at all. Unprofessional to say the least. Now, finally, to get on with this boring educational class. Nope. Tag didn't know much about the Salem Witch Trials. Ok, maybe a bit or something, but his classmates had probably mentioned something about it already, yeah?
How the witches would be burned or something at the stake? But maybe he could offer something else. "If you confessed to being a witch you weren't executed. I think. Sent to prison? Something like that." The blonde wasn't a genius. And this wasn't his favorite class in the world. But look, participation right here. That's about as much as Tag knew.
Oh!!! He knew her!!! Jeremiah grinned at the girl as she sat down next to him and returned the wave too, Hi friend, Hi. He was all beamy and excited and was even preparing. For taking noted cause he was THRILLED!!!
though his excitment almost jumped out of his body when the door slammed and the fourteen year old jumped a foor in his seat. That was not nice. Letting out a breath he jotted the professor's name on his paper, for suture reference then in big letters wrote 'SALEM WITCH TRIALS' along the top, sloppily, and underlined it before he began jotting down notes. He was pratically wiggling in his seat cause he knew lots about this fact. He knew lots about a lot of thingsreally but this was his favorite. As others began to list facts he picked through his brain trying to find one, just one, cause thats all he could give. He thought about being a showoff amd laying out his most prominent fact about how most the victems nd prosecuted werent even from Salem Village but from the next town over,but he decided to just, not. Raising his hand he called out a date "The first of March 1692 was when the Salem witch hunt began." that date, exactly. Or so they think anyway. Next question.
Bounce.Bounce.Bounce
"Good afternoon, professor," she greeted before surveying the mostly-filled classroom - there was Mo, Alec, Ella, Bart, Cat, Tag, Brynn... and Tobes, who seemed to be kind of glum, from what she could tell. Curious, she hurried to slip into the empty seat near him before anyone else got there, and gave him a questioning, concerned look, but didn't say anything. Was he okay? Was he gonna vom? Or was he mad? Was he going to blow up at someone? She wasn't sure, but Sophie slipped a self-inking quill from her bag and scribbled Sophie Brown on the tag on her desk, flipping it up so the professor could see.
...What was going on with those Gryffindors?
Toby was just sitting there, kind of stewing and finding himself more and more BLARGH with every passing second that he could hear those Gryffindors yelling.
But then he felt the air shifting beside him, and turned to seeeeeee... Sophie!
Tobias caught the concerned look, but he was becoming aware of the professor dealing with the other boys out of the corner of his eye and he felt his crankiness lessen slightly. He was about to explain that he was fine, but heard the sudden SLAMMING of a door and quickly looked around, almost scowling.
No. He was calm, and he gave Sophie a nudge with his elbow to silently communicate that all was okay, because the lesson had started and Toby didn't want to talk over the professor.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Braith McCormack
Sliding up from his leaning position at the side of his desk to sit at the edge of it, Braith looked out into the sea of young faces. “For today’s lesson, we are going to start off by discussing what many in our circles consider to be one of the worst moments in Wizarding history.” He paused for dramatic effect. Did they know what he was referring to? No, he wasn’t going to make them guess, just think about that statement for a moment. Once he felt his words sunk in enough, he continued. “And that would be the Salem Witch Trials. But before we talk about it, I would like to know what you already know.” As in facts. Most of them should be at least familiar with some part of the events, he thought, but it was covered in their textbooks as well if they needed a reference. “So, I’d like each of you to tell us one thing you know about the Salem Witch Trials, or even Wizarding persecution in general.” Too gruesome for the younger ones? They'll get over it.
Salem.
That made Tobias think of Forrest, which... yeah. He almost seemed to deflate slightly and felt his attention starting to wander, and began fiddling with his quill. He didn't really know anything about the Salem Witch Trials. Tobias had a general rule about not dwelling on the past, so it was probably because of that that History of Magic was probably his worst subject. A lot of sitting still and paying attention was required, too.
But he wasn't a quitter. He'd still try. AND he'd try to stop being such a grump, 'cause that wasn't fun for anyone. So he smiled.
Tobias raised his hand, wincing ever so slightly at a cracking sound and painful straining in his shoulder area, but answering the question nonetheless. "The Salem Witch Trials..." The third year began confidently, even managing to project some of his usual cheer. But... he'd paused. For reasons. "... were..." ??????????????? "... unhappy."
A fitting answer from someone who placed a lot of importance on positivity, right? Still, he knew it was a weak answer, so Toby found himself jotting notes down and peeking inside his textbook to see if there was anything that might jog his memory on the topic. Because that was what learning was about, right? And sometimes that meant getting things wrong.
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Days of Potter 2023:___________________________ Which Bertie Botts Flavour Are You? You are Chocolate!
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Erm.......... Professor McCormack was scary. The professor who thought that slamming a door was a good idea was just so wrong. It made Astrid uncomfortable, you know? But she took notes of what her classmates had said even if she knew some of them. Just so she looked like she was busy and stuff. Nineteen people. 1692. She listed them all.
So yeah. Astrid raised her hand to answer. "Those who were accused were dunked into water, pressed with heavy rocks, hanged. They underwent a lot of tests just to prove it and, if the accusers weren't satisfied, the accused were... killed." Eh. Yeah. She didn't like this topic at all. Why were they talking about witch trials? Deaths? Killing? Alleged stuff about witches? Her kind was no harm at all.
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It's so magical, feeling that no one's got a hold_______________________________ ___________________________________And the whole wide world is whistling...
She got a crooked grin! Can we just fangirl right now!?? Done. She liked the man already without even knowing his name... which proved to be Braith McCormack later on, when he introduced himself.
Oh, this was already such a great afternoon! Definitely! And the slamming of the door was such a nice touch! THAT is how you showed authority, Erik Vinteren.
Okay, the Professor has her full attention now. One of the worst moments in Wizarding history. How about no? It was a learning experience. There's a difference. But we'll go with the 'worst moment' thing, because clearly the class was about the Salem Witch Trials. Funny how it was 'witch' and not 'wizard', yeah? Either way, what did Lottie know? "The hunt was far more exciting than the trials, the hysteria, the mystery, it must have been chaos back then. Not knowing."BEAM! It was exciting, okay? Though, not for those who died, of course, but still exciting. "It started in 1692...," like many have said, "...and the hearings were held in Salem Town, Ipswich, Andover and Salem Village." AGAIN, the HUNT was far more exciting.
Wow, overuse of the word 'exciting' right now.
And she knows more about this topic, okay, she even has former notes on this. Lex does too, it was in their notebook. Mmhmmm.
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Well.
Okay.
West was paying attention, but honestly he didn't know about the Salem stuff in great detail because he'd never even been to America so. Yeah. He could contribute though, so he put his hand up.
"In the late seventeenth century, around the same time as all the persecution stuff was coming to a head worldwide, the British Ministry for Magic-which was pretty much brand new- sent a delegation to William III and Mary II to try and convince them to allow for protection of Wizardkind under Muggle law, but they refused, and then when the Witch Trial stuff happened, it was a catalyst for the statute properly being enacted everywhere, to protect wizardkind and mugglekind."
Oh and his name tag was filled out with his name of course.
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SPOILER!!: McCormack
Quote:
Originally Posted by Braith McCormack
Alright, really starting this time. Anyone else coming in after this point would be considered late. Braith flicked his wand at the door SLAMMING it shut. Yes, that was for those students threatening to fall asleep. Time to wake up now because if they couldn’t stay alert, they would not be participating in the practical part of this lesson. It was dangerous enough as it was, he couldn’t have any careless accidents. “Good afternoon class and welcome to History of Magic!” he greeted his students enthusiastically. He loved his area of expertise and wanted to bring that passion to his subject, hoping even just one person could benefit from that. “My name is Braith McCormack and I will be your professor this term.” Will he be after that? That remained to be seen.
Sliding up from his leaning position at the side of his desk to sit at the edge of it, Braith looked out into the sea of young faces. “For today’s lesson, we are going to start off by discussing what many in our circles consider to be one of the worst moments in Wizarding history.” He paused for dramatic effect. Did they know what he was referring to? No, he wasn’t going to make them guess, just think about that statement for a moment. Once he felt his words sunk in enough, he continued. “And that would be the Salem Witch Trials. But before we talk about it, I would like to know what you already know.” As in facts. Most of them should be at least familiar with some part of the events, he thought, but it was covered in their textbooks as well if they needed a reference. “So, I’d like each of you to tell us one thing you know about the Salem Witch Trials, or even Wizarding persecution in general.” Too gruesome for the younger ones? They'll get over it.
Schuyler was in the midst of absently turning the stud earring on her earlobe when... SLAM.
Whoa. That was LOUD. Also, Schuyler was not ready for it; hence the reason she kind of jumped slightly in her seat. Her hand dropped to her desk and she took her quill. Anyway..
So, the topic of the day would be the Salem Witch Trials. Okay, Schuyler was somewhat familiar with this. Yeah. It helped that she'd studied at a wizarding school in America for years one through four. And that this wizarding school just so happened to be Salem Institute. Before he delved into any lectures, Professor McCormack probed them for their knowledge.
Good place to start.
Some of the other students began volunteering the knowledge in their brains, so Schuyler waited a bit before adding her two cents. Okay.. so what was something that hadn't been said?
Well, being a female, she went ahead with...
"More women than men were accused because muggles in that day believed women were weaker than men and were therefore more susceptible to the devil's persuasion."
Ah, first student of the day. And she happened to be a quiet one. Braith simply gave her an acknowledging nod as he watched her take her seat, glad to see her following his instructions, then turned his eyes back to the door again when he saw another student arriving.
This student at least greeted him, though his welcoming smile turned slightly bemused at her words. “Good afternoon,” he gently corrected her with a still curious smile, returning her greeting. Was she yawning? The girl looked like she had pulled an all-nighter and was starting to crash. Not like he had class first thing in the morning.
McCormack had started to turn his eyes away as the apparently exhausted teenager sat down to glance at the doorway again when he heard a thud. His eyes snapped back over to the seated girl, lowering to the textbook on the floor. The one for his class. Not picking it up anytime soon..? He watched her carefully for another moment, wondering if a cup of coffee before class would have been beneficial to her, then gave her a disarming smile. ”I’d appreciate it if you’d pick that up. You’ll need it today.” Unless of course she already had an eidetic memory, though he still didn’t need classroom materials tossed about on the floor.
As more students began entering, Braith again turned his attention towards the door to greet those that came in. “Hello,” he smiled at the Slytherin girl as she acknowledged him first, though his smile soon faltered to a curious expression as he watched her drag herself to a seat. Another sleep-deprived student?
Braith watched the next student to come in rather curiously. Another one with a yawn, even before she heard his lecture. ”Good afternoon, dear,” he said, his smile not as bright as before as his mind wandered, but still welcoming nonetheless. She certainly was acting like it was late in the evening though, wasn’t she? What was with these kids? They were acting like they had just rolled out of bed or were having one of those late night Astronomy lessons. Hmm. Maybe they had one the night before and didn’t get enough sleep. He’d make a mental note to speak with Flamsteed after class about coordinating their schedules so students weren’t so tired in his class. History of Magic already had a bad rap as it was for being coma-inducing. He didn’t need to start off the term this way.
McCormack smiled a bit wider at the young Hufflepuff boy as he walked in. At least this kid wasn’t yawning already. ”Good afternoon,” he nodded at the boy, though he couldn’t help but to notice how slowly he was walking. Weren’t kids supposed to be full of energy?
Braith lifted his eyes again as another boy walked in, returning his quick smile. ”Hello,” he responded in kind, watching for a moment as he found a seat. No yawning or dragging himself to his seat, that was somewhat more encouraging.
SPOILER!!: KEVIN AND BART ><
Sigh. There was a reason that Braith typically taught at the University level instead of working with younger kids. And that was about to present itself. The faint smile the History of Magic professor wore when the young boy walked through the door soon faded into a smirk at the boy’s words. He shot the boy a very unimpressed look as he spoke. “Young man, if you wish to keep something not normally allowed in class then I suggest you ask permission, not tell me what you are or are not going to do.” Honestly, the boy wearing the cap in class actually wouldn’t have bothered him, but his tone certainly did. “That’s two points from Gryffindor for your disrespect.” Seriously, he was lucky it wasn’t more. Braith considered himself a fairly laid back guy, but one thing he did not tolerate was disrespect from children. “Now, unless you’d like your hat to have a permanent seat on my desk, then I suggest you come back up here and try that again.” And he’d better get it right this time.
Waiting for the boy to make the right choice, Braith turned to the next young boy to walk through the door. Mhm, he had just about the right amount of energy the man would expect to come from a kid his age. ”Sup dude,” he returned the greeting with a crooked grin of his own. He didn’t pay a whole lot of attention to where the boy went to sit, instead turning his eyes back to the doorway to view a few more students wandering in, until he heard a whole lot of shouting.
Of course it involved the rude boy and that flipping hat. He turned sharply towards the two boys, observing for only a moment before raising his hand in a nonverbal gesture to stop. “Alright, alright!”he began, his voice more elevated than usual. “That is enough. You, sit there. And you, sit there.” He pointed out a seat at the very front corner on one side of the room for Kevin and one at the very front corner on the other side of the room for the other boy who had yet to fill out his name tag (Bart). He did not need any behavioral issues in class today. Hopefully they would end now before more serious action needed to be taken. He hated having to be strict but he wasn’t having such a ruckus when he needed to teach. And Kevin had about 30 seconds to ask permission or the hat was gone.
SPOILER!!: MOAR Replies!!
Braith took to lightly rubbing his temples for a moment, turning his eyes back to the door. ”Good day, Miss Cambridge. Nice to see you again,” he greeted the Gryffindor prefect with a smile, which faltered slightly seeing how slowly she was dragging herself. Another sleep-deprived student or just not wanting to be here? He watched her curiously as she went to find a seat, then shook his head slightly. ”No, that’s fine,” he said in regards to her question. ”Not injured, I hope?” Did the girl play Quidditch? He had heard they were holding tryouts not long ago.
He gave the next boy to walk in a friendly smile as he approached. Oh, this was the Head Boy, was he not? [b}”Hello,”[/b} he returned the greeting in kind, mirroring the boy’s smile and nod before the Head Boy went to find his own seat.
And the Head Girl to walk in directly after. Braith gave her a welcoming smile as she greeted him. ”Hello,” he returned, glancing her way as she went to sit down. It really wasn’t all that encouraging that so many students seemed so glum. What had their previous lessons been like?
Braith eyed the boy carefully as he walked in returning his nod. It was alright as far as greetings went, he supposed, not that he was blatantly rude, but he was going to get as good as he gave. Good, following instructions was always appreciated and he nodded his approval to Ian as he filled out his name tag.
This one got something of a raised eyebrow. No greeting at all, hmm? He didn’t care all that much, though he did not the boy’s supposed enthusiasm as he came in. That was a good sign.
Braith looked up to see the Ravenclaw prefect. ”Hello,” he returned the greeting, giving the boy a welcoming smile and nod. He glanced over at the boy as he sat down, his eyes falling on the name tag at his desk. Starfish. Right. He did know that McCormack possessed a class roster and these name tags were simply to help match up names with faces? He knew for certain there was no “Starfish” on his roster but if he didn’t want credit for his work in this class because he couldn’t properly write his name down, that wasn’t Braith’s problem.
Nice to see such a good showing for his first class. He gave a smile to the next person to come in and greet him. [b]”Good afternoon,”[b] he smiled at the girl, then gave her a nod as she went to take a seat.
And another silent child. Braith watched the boy for a moment as he walked in and wordlessly got a seat. Alright. He wasn’t getting a greeting either, though the professor did note that the boy looked quite sullen. He’d say maybe he’d gotten up on the wrong side of the bed, but at this time of the day he should be over it by now. Nothing he was going to dwell on certainly.
Braith turned his focus on the polite young lady as she entered and greeted him. And he did the same, giving her a welcoming smile. ”Good afternoon.” He followed that with a nod as she turned to take her seat.
Braith turned his eyes towards the door again as another student walked in. An older Hufflepuff boy by the looks of it and he gave him a welcoming smile as he approached. ”Hello to you too.” He gave him a nod as he took his seat and followed the instructions.
He eyed the next girl to walk in as she yawned and took a seat. Too tired to remember her manners perhaps? At least she was following directions even if there was no customary greeting to preface it. Moving on…
Braith turned and gave the next girl to walk in a bright smile, noting her demeanor and good manners, though he did have to chuckle at her greeting. ”Good afternoon!” he returned the greeting just as enthusiastically, wondering if she perhaps slept in, throwing her internal clock off. But she seemed positive about class and that was what was important.
And another enthusiastic girl. Braith gave her his friendly crooked grin as came in and cheerily greeted him. ”And good afternoon to you as well,” he returned just as earnestly in return, noting that she took a seat next to Miss Cambridge and glanced at her tag as well. Miss Wisteria? That would do just fine as he had her first name on the roster anyway, though he did find it remotely amusing that she’d fill it out in that manner. And he typically addressed his students by their title and surname anyway.
No greeting from this one either, simply a look. Braith gave him an unimpressed look in return, not dwelling much on the lack of decorum. If the boy couldn’t be bothered, Braith wouldn’t be going out of his way to make him feel welcome either. As long as he pulled his weight in class, he didn’t give a second thought about it.
See, it wasn’t that hard to be polite. The Slytherin got a welcoming smile as she greeted McCormack. ”Good afternoon to you too,” he responded in return giving her a nod as she looked for a seat. She actually looked happy to be here which made his job slightly easier.
Briath glanced over at the young Ravenclaw as she entered as well, giving her a nod in return. Shy perhaps? Sometimes the youngest ones were. He watched her for a moment as she seemed to have trouble with the name tag, then gave her a nod and encouraging smile as she seemed to set things straight.
Another quiet student, though that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. Braith returned the girl’s polite smile watching for a moment as she selected a seat, then he turned back to the doorway again.
And then followed yet another student who seemed to have left his manners out in the hallway. Braith glanced over at him sitting in his seat, pleased that he was following his instructions of course, though a simple hello or even a nod wouldn’t have killed him. That’s fine, no greeting in return is all, though maybe silence was better in this case. The boy looked like he was ready to bite someone’s head off.
Braith smiled at the young boy as he entered the classroom and greeted him. ”Good afternoon,” he returned with a nod, watching as he took a seat before watching for anyone else to come in. It was getting near that time to get started.
And another welcoming smile for such a pleasant greeting from this girl. ”Hello!” he returned matching her enthusiasm, giving her an approving nod as he watched her sit and scribble her name on the tag at her desk.
Braith gave the small girl a welcoming smile as she entered, though he could barely hear her words. Another shy girl possibly, but he appreciated the effort. ”Hello, dear,” he returned the greeting, watching for a moment as she sat down, then glanced at his watch before noticing a few more students start to trickle in.
Braith gave a crooked grin to the enthusiastic boy to come in next and a sort of finger-point/salute in response to his wave. ”Hey there, kiddo,” he replied in return, matching the boy’s eager tone, then gave him a nod as he took a seat.
Braith’s eyes followed this student as he walked in and wordlessly took a seat. Eh. He was getting kind of used to the lack of social convention from kids at this point. He was about to start class anyway so no time to bother with it anyway.
Braith gave the girl a warm, welcoming smile as she walked in, pleased to see such enthusiasm for class from a young girl. ”Hello, Miss Granger.,” he began with a nod. ”Thank you for the introduction, much appreciated.” Good manners often left an impression.
McCormack gave a nod to the young Slytherin girl as she came in next in addition to a welcoming smile as she greeted him. ”Hello,” he returned, following her with his eyes as she took a seat and sat quietly. ”Don’t forget to fill out your nametag, please,” he added with an encouraging nod.
Another silent one. Braith merely nodded in her direction as she sat down to fill out her nametag. A lack of greeting begets the same. Class performance could still remain to be seen however.
Braith had a smile in return for the young Ravenclaw girl as she walked in pleasantly enough. ”Good afternoon to you as well, he said in reply to her greeting, then watched her sit down before looking at his watch again. Yep, about time to start class.
Braith was just about to shut the door when another student slipped in just in time. He returned the boy's nod with one of his own, then turned his eyes to the door again.
"Good afternoon," Braith returned the greeting of the Hufflepuff girl with a smile as she walked in, just in time. Good, she was following instructions too and he gave her an approving nod.
Very last one, this boy just made it in the nick of time, but Braith still gave him a welcoming smile as he walked in and greeted him. "Hello," he nodded towards him as he went to take a seat.
Alright, really starting this time. Anyone else coming in after this point would be considered late. Braith flicked his wand at the door SLAMMING it shut. Yes, that was for those students threatening to fall asleep. Time to wake up now because if they couldn’t stay alert, they would not be participating in the practical part of this lesson. It was dangerous enough as it was, he couldn’t have any careless accidents. “Good afternoon class and welcome to History of Magic!” he greeted his students enthusiastically. He loved his area of expertise and wanted to bring that passion to his subject, hoping even just one person could benefit from that. “My name is Braith McCormack and I will be your professor this term.” Will he be after that? That remained to be seen.
Sliding up from his leaning position at the side of his desk to sit at the edge of it, Braith looked out into the sea of young faces. “For today’s lesson, we are going to start off by discussing what many in our circles consider to be one of the worst moments in Wizarding history.” He paused for dramatic effect. Did they know what he was referring to? No, he wasn’t going to make them guess, just think about that statement for a moment. Once he felt his words sunk in enough, he continued. “And that would be the Salem Witch Trials. But before we talk about it, I would like to know what you already know.” As in facts. Most of them should be at least familiar with some part of the events, he thought, but it was covered in their textbooks as well if they needed a reference. “So, I’d like each of you to tell us one thing you know about the Salem Witch Trials, or even Wizarding persecution in general.” Too gruesome for the younger ones? They'll get over it.
Cutty had slipped silently into the classroom, perfectly prepared to find this class nowhere near as good as it had been in the past. BUT HE WAS WRONG! Bart from Potions was mouthing off and Tempus was slamming his book down on the desk. Then the instructor, a Braith McCormack, was slamming the door shut, and even Cutty's old seat had still been available. He had done as instructed and placed his name on the name card, and having just been from the points hourglasses was tempted to give his house as Hufflepuff and make up some fantastic lie about having to borrow a friend or family members tie.
But then he'd have to behave sufficiently stupid enough to get points knocked off. And it was actually a lot harder than it looked, acting stupid was. Oh, it was possible. But more effort than was worth that afternoon, and actually he'd been cutting back on the non-covert mischief and History of Magic was kind of a favoured subject for him. Speaking of which,...
The Salem Witch trials. International History. Cutty could get behind this. He listened carefully to the answers given by his classmates and considered what hadn't been said, but mostly what HAD, because he actually felt like there was very little he could recall off hand about it.
Except for that man who had gotten crushed by rocks.
That sounded grisly to Cutty, but he calm and happy look upon the boy's face as the thought passed through his mind suggested a sort of numbness of soul if one was in the know.
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They were going to be learning about the Salem Witch trials?
This was going to be an interesting lesson, and Lux did not really like thinking about all the people who had died because they were witches... or thought to be witches.
Raising her hand, she offered some knowledge that she knew about the Witch Trials, "A lot of people were executed horribly because they were thought to be witches and everyone was super paranoid." It made her sad to think of all the people who died, especially the women since there were a lot more of them accused than men.
Gwen held her breath as he paused. How was she supposed to know what the worst moment in wizarding history was? A quick glance around the room told her that all of the wizard-born kids knew what he was going to say. One more thing in which she had the disadvantage. The he said it. The Salem Witch Trials. At least Gwen had heard of those. She'd gone to see The Crucible once with her father.
She raised her hand, just to clarify something. "But they weren't real witches, sir. Those girls were inventing it to get attention." All she had seen about wizards and witches so far only reinforced that conclusion. They didn't chant and dance in a forest while someone conjured spirits. At least, Gwen didn't think they did. Oh, something she knew about them. "The main accuser was a girl named Abigail Williams," that was a fact, right?
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Oh, this was actually interesting. Hannah tried to pay attention to what everybody else was saying so she would not repeat an answer. Muggles sure could be dumb. Wouldn't you know that you couldn't just dispose of a real witch that easy. Hannah was pretty sure there was one witch who loved the tickling sensation that being burned caused and she was "burned" like 20 times. She wasn't sure if that was what the professor was looking for though.
Hannah tried to raise her hand and after five minutes of her arm not wanting to move she gave up. "Professor there were two or so small children that were having "fits" that couldn't be diagnosed that started the whole trial." Maybe the kids just thought it would be a good laugh or something.
Oh man, the Salem witch trials. More like trials of ultimate stupidity that proved nothing and killed countless for no good reason. It was just terrible for everyone Oichi started to feel a bit ill but still she raised her hand and a bit weakly responded, "The Salem Witch Trials was one of the worst times in human history. For a time in the 1600s it made it okay and even praised to accuse people of being witch for the stupidest of things including just being someone who someone else does not like. The trial of these accused witches is pretty much anything that would require them to escape death. Then even if you somehow did they now saw you as a tied up witch and cut off you're head. It was time where both muggles and witches equally feared for their lives if they lived in Salem. These Trials were the trials of ultimate stupidity that proved nothing a needlessly killed countless people", Oichi was on the verge of crying after finishing her answer. She hated thinking back on this time in history, it was aweful, the end.
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Alex knew a little bit about the Salem Witch Trials. She tried to remember some specific details so she could add to the discussion. Raising her hand she said, "During the Salem Witch Trials, they used many crazy tests to determine whether or not someone was a witch.". "One test was: If a person was acting strangely or having a fit, they would have the accused person touch them. Then if the person stopped having a fit when touched, the accused person would be considered guilty."
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ASK for permission? Kevin gave the apparently new Professor a defiant look. Yeah how about no? He never asked for permission and certainly not nicely. He rolled his miss matched colored eyes when he lost points like he cared and then turned his attention to his side when he saw Bart standing up. And hitting his bag against his shoulder as he walked passed. The Gryffindor groaned as he rubbed the shoulder and then send a glare in Bart's direction. What was that for?!
Oh wait...he had to sit up front as well? Mweh, whatever. The first year grabbed his own school bag and with slow steps because he couldn't walk very fast he moved to the chair that the new Professor had pointed at. His baseball cap was still firmly on his head and he still refused to ask for permission. Instead, he took off the cap himself and held it in his hand as he sat down on the chair. Bart had already shouted in class that his hair was starting to get grey so why bother. This way, he wasn't asking for permission kevin logic uhuh
He did not flinch when the door slammed close a few minutes later and the first year listened to the man introducing himself and asking the first question. Witch hunt... "it involved witches" he said in a sarcastic tone from the corner of the room.
Delilah smiled a little when the Head Girl sat next to her. Ella was literally one of the nicest people she'd met in school, really. "Hey, Ella." The Hufflepuff whispered, not wanted to talk louder and get in trouble when class had not even begun.
... And she almost jumped when the professor literally slammed the door shut. What was that? She made a small face and turned towards the front of the class as the professor started to introduce himself. Braith McCormack. Interesting name, Braith.
"Uh.. people who were suspected of witchcraft were punished?" It was one of most horrible things to have ever happened, really. She shuddered just a little.
History of Magic Lesson One 
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