Wizarding familiars. He needed to learn a thing or two about them, but every time he thought about going to see the Creatures professor he got distracted by the top hat he still had in his office. Going down there would mean giving it back so....no. He was avoiding that.

Which is why he was pleased as a comet to learn that there was a seminar being held on the topic. Score one for the astronomer! Because he was utterly clueless when it came to Hershel. Pebbles had been so easy and Tiberius, well, that was an exception. A Big bassy exception.

Completely out of breath by the time he arrived at the door, Airey didn't even have the strength to shriek show his displeasure with the BEAST that was weaving through the man's legs - clearly trying to assassinate him. Clearly. Those things were monsters. MONSTERS.

So he just stood there in the doorway. Silent. Mouth hanging open. Staring.

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Originally Posted by lemon

Since when did Alice ever sit down first? She went right up to the man and his tabby before anything else, silently inspecting them from up close. Had the guy rubbed some kind of fish sauce on his pant legs? Was that why the kitty was so fond of him? Hmm, questions. Had 'em here.

Under normal circumstances, she would have crouched down and stared at the cat from close up, but her knees were going to crack. And pop. And probably dislocate.

So she just offered the man a "Hi, sir," and meowed right back at the cat. And then went to go take her seat.

This one seemed a polite young lady. She got an approving smile from Jeremiah, and he bit back a chuckle when she meowed at the cat. Very good. After all, who didn't meow at cats?No, really...... who didn't? Nobody, right?

"Hello," Jeremiah nodded at the girl who then went to sit down, whose badge had identified her as the Gryffindor captain.

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Originally Posted by FireboltAvis88

Sander smiled his thanks,"Thank you, sir," he told Mr. Bode before slowly kneeling down to first scratch the cat under his neck. Then he patted him on the head before beginning to stroke his back. "You are a handsome cat, Leo. Yes you are. " Sander whispered to the cat. He had heard the instructor telling Mo that was the cat's name.

"Well I have to go back and join my friends now, Leo. I'll come back and visit once class is over." Sander whispered to the cat, giving it one final pet and stroke before slowly...very slowly straightening up from his kneeling position.

Once he was standing as upright as he possibly could, Sander thanked the instructor. "Thank you for allowing me to spend some time with Leo." he told the instructor before walking over to where his backpack was, and where Lux was now sitting next to him, in her chair.

Lovely young man. Jeremiah very much approved of this one. So gentle with Leo. And speaking of Leo, the cat seemed to warm quite nicely to the young man. When there was a few moments in which nobody passed through the doors, Jeremiah watched the two interact and smiled to himself.

"You're very welcome, Sander," he finally said when the boy straightened again. "I'm sure Leo appreciates it as well."

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Originally Posted by Deezerz

So why not say hi? It wasn't like she could mess that up. Walking away from the entrance and deeper into the room she waved at him. "Good day, Sir." Oh my Merlin that had taken a lot... but... it felt nice. Not being so shy. Liberating, even. :3

"Good day to you also," Jeremiah responded to the polite young girl, offering her a wave also. In some ways she almost reminded him of a cat, though he was unable to say why. Not that he even voiced that out lout.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Presley Black

She chose a seat and lowered herself gently into it. No need to aggravate her achy muscles and bones, right?

The next girl to enter was another quiet one, but Jeremiah couldn't help but be concerned at the way she seemed to also move as though in or avoiding pain. Even the youngest students, then? That was sad.

Leo had now resumed pacing and winding in and out of Jeremiah's legs again.

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Originally Posted by sweetpinkpixie

Completely out of breath by the time he arrived at the door, Airey didn't even have the strength to shriek show his displeasure with the BEAST that was weaving through the man's legs - clearly trying to assassinate him. Clearly. Those things were monsters. MONSTERS.

So he just stood there in the doorway. Silent. Mouth hanging open. Staring.

Jeremiah had been informed that a staff member or two might even show up to the seminar. Whether that was to learn something or to be there just in case the students got out of hand, Jeremiah didn't know. But looking at these students, he didn't think it would ever be the latter.

He offered the old man in the doorway a friendly nod and a smile. "Won't you come in and take a seat, Professor?"


And on that note, it seemed like it was time to be getting started. Jeremiah gave a short cough, designed to get the attention of the students.

"Good-" … wait, what time was it? The man squinted ever so slightly, before changing tack. "Hello everyone. My name is Jeremiah Bode." Jeremiah spoke with a level voice, which rang out through the room, and every word sounded if your hearing wasn’t failing like it was carefully deliberated before being spoken, though Jeremiah did not speak slowly. "You may call me Mr. Bode, or Jeremiah, whichever is most comfortable."

He looked out over everyone’s faces before going on. "I’m here to talk to you today about wizarding familiars. True wizarding familiars, to be exact.

"It is a well-known fact that many wizards have pets, just as muggles do. The types of animals that wizards generally keep as pets does vary, but traditionally speaking, owls, cats and toads are seen as the 'top three'. It is a long-standing tradition at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and presumably other magical schools, that the students admitted are allowed at least one pet. It is no coincidence that those 'top three' wizarding pets I mentioned earlier are all on this list." Jeremiah nodded his head towards the cat at his feet, who by now had stopped pacing again. Leo seemed quite eager to meet these students, but Jeremiah was thankful that he stayed put for now.

"So my first question is this: why do you think Hogwarts allows its students to bring a pet along to school with them?"

Yuuuup. Definitely starting to think that she should have taken her kneazle with her, though maybe not. He'd be offended he wasn't one of the top three pets to be on that list--was it even a legit list or just something people made up?

Eh, whatever, questions. Her hand took it's time in being raised. "For comfort and acceptance Sir. Not everyone's fantastic at being liked and making friends. Pets are there for those who would otherwise have no one to talk to. Alternately they teach us responsibility. I have to train my kneazle to be good at hiding things and that other people's pets aren't food. It's not exactly a walk in the park."

See? Logic. She had it.

Pets helped people grow.

Pets!

That's why Ella had wanted to come to this seminar. It was all coming back to her now. The Head Girl sat up a little straighter with some difficulty as Mr. Bode spoke, eager to offer her two galleons on the subject of pets and why they were beneficial to students.

"Along with what... ... ..." What was her name again? The Gryffindor? It was something with an L- "Lox said, they can inspire social interaction as well. People can be brought together when they own the same type of pet or when they have questions about one's pet so it's a good way for students to interact with each other. Gives them something to talk about."

Hand up.

“So…it would be easier for the students to adjust to their new environment?” He owns a dog back home and Rolf is always his constant source of comfort whenever his family have to move from one place to another.

“I guess you call them ‘familiars’ for a reason. They grow and bond with their owner giving them a sense of familiarity. It’s…sort of an anchor and extension of the owner.”

Meeh. Hopefully he made sense.

Thank Merlin for these seats.

Nigel listened to Jeremiah on off about cat, toads, and cat. Familiars and the such. No idea why toads are useful as familiars. They did seem pointless compared to cats and owls. Nigel raised his hand to answer.

"Owls are really useful for carrying mail besides being a pet or familiar."

Now if you had a raven as a familiar. That would be pretty cool. If it was possible.

Delilah quietly settled in class, feeling tired as usual. Tired and fatigued, really. And all she did was nap all day. The girl had a good mind to visit the Healer later and find out what was going on. She was so tired of feeling tired.. if that even made any sense. Anyway.

She listened to Mr. Bode ( Hey! He shared his name with her friend. Jeremiah. Awesome. ) speak. Hmmm. Pets! Yes, she loved animals a lot so she was pretty sure she was going to enjoy this class. If only she didn't feel like so exhausted...

Delilah raised a hand. "Because pets help the owner feel more comfortable in general? Especially when the owner is away from home for the first time?" Yeah, she was SO glad she had her Lola.

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Originally Posted by Felixir

Jeremiah had been informed that a staff member or two might even show up to the seminar. Whether that was to learn something or to be there just in case the students got out of hand, Jeremiah didn't know. But looking at these students, he didn't think it would ever be the latter.

He offered the old man in the doorway a friendly nod and a smile. "Won't you come in and take a seat, Professor?"

Come in....with that terrifying creature? Airey would have just turned around and scampered back to the comfort of his Astronomy Tower were it not for the fact that he could hardly walk let alone scamper. Also...there was a seat really close to where he was standing. Sitting down right now felt like the thing to go to give his weary bones a break.

"Righto...will do...thank you, Mr. Bode," he said as he move towards the empty seat and as far away from the man, his fur infested clothing, and his feline.

And on that note, it seemed like it was time to be getting started. Jeremiah gave a short cough, designed to get the attention of the students.

With a little groan as he sat, the astronomer tried to relax into his seat and simply sat through the first question, his right ear turned towards the man so he could hear properly. He wasn't planning on answering any questions, that was for the students to do, but perhaps he would chime in with a question or two should they come to mind.

He was having a hard time concentrating on anything other than the beast in the room.

Shudder.

Theo had no idea what this seminar was about, but he decided to make an appearance since he didn't bother with the last one. He regretted not going to the last, people made it sound quite interesting. Pets? They were talking about PETS? Theo hated pets, but he raised his hand anyway.

"To give people something to take care of." Not him, though, of course.

Smiles were returned to the Head Girlfriend. HEY! ... She knew he was likely to be distracted, right? Right. Yeah.

Oh, were they getting started? It seemed so since Mr... Mr... ... what had he said his name was again? BLINK. He looked around at the random people in the hall, his grey-blue eyes widening a little. Help? Please? Name? Someone was bound to say it, right? He didn't want to end up calling him something weird like... like Mr Cat. Because he had a cat whose name the boy hadn't caught either.

... Not a great start.

Seminar Man was talking again and so, Alec turned his attention back to him. What were they talking about? Pets? Okay, he could talk about pets then. He slowly raised his hand in the air before saying, "Pets are awesome!" ... Pause. He should add something else. "Erm... they help to relieve stress, too. And even if they can't talk to you, they offer support and a listening ear." Not his owl, who only seemed to like him for his food but... that wasn't something he was going to mention. "I mean... yeah. Dad says they're good at improving your mood and health." Props to having a father who was a vet.

... This... made him miss his puppy. Who was growing up very quickly. Sad.

Sander spent some time thinking about the question. Why were they allowed animals into the school? Hazarding a guess he raised his hand, "Sir, could it be partly for companionship, especially if you're a first year or a transfer and don't know anybody."

Sander then realized another possible reason. "The animal you bring is already someone you're familiar with. You both understand each other's quirks, likes and dislikes. And so your animal would be the one you would initially trust the most. There have been rumors that sometimes the owner and their animal friend tend to share an uncanny resemblance with each other."

Was his assumption correct?

"Hi, Benny,'' Adi said, observing his friend whom he noticed moved funnily. Pain of the bones too, perhaps? Yep. He figured that because even he walked differently these days due to his knees.
.......................

Great! They were starting. Huh? Not a coincidence those three are on the list? Adi's curiosity was elevated at once. But first, the question. He raised his hand slowly. "Because they provide comfort. I think they provide a link to our homes and it sort of helps us not to feel homesick when we are at Hogwarts.'' Yush! That was Adi's opinion. He would not go anywhere without Gus who was right now safely in one of his robe's pockets.

Caleb really didn't care for the seminars, but anything that involved him focusing on something OTHER than his achy joints and his gray hair and peppered beard helped him pass the days along. So here he was. Hanging out and learning about cats, apparently.

"They help us with our magic, right? So you have something to test transfiguration on. Some say that animals even help your magic and protect you," he explained.

Although Beans had done a HORRIBLE job protecting him from this mega aging thing. Useless thing.

Benjy lowered himself into a chair at the side of the room sloooowly. Nice and sloooowly. He could do the whole seminar from over here, right? Because there wasn't going to be much more movement from Benjy's knees and hip today. Getting here from the Common Room was hard enough.

Oh, and they were starting? Benjy though about the question, before raising his hand. "They teach us responsibility too, right? We're the only ones looking after them when we're away from home."

What did he say? Gwen tilted one ear closer to the instructor, trying to hear better. Something about pets. "We had a goldfish once," she informed him, hoping that was the answer he was looking for. What class was this even? She couldn't remember seeing anything about pets on her schedule, and she didn't recognize the instructor, and professor Flamsteed was also taking the class?

West shrugged and put his hand up. "In old times, they used to help with magic. Sometimes for things like testing spells or potions on them, sometimes it was just good to keep them around because they're super sensitive to magical imbalances. They can help bring you back to yourself if you've messed up a spell that you tested on yourself, sort of like a link to who you are supposed to be. You can use them to be your eyes and ears, or use them to fetch ingredients sometimes, or if your connection is real good, to extend the range of your spellwork from what I read but I've never seen anyone do that. They're supposed to be helpful for divination stuff too. I guess they sort of fell out of favour when it comes to practical usage like that though, maybe because of all the crazy animal rights people took offense."

And that about exhausted West's knowledge about the topic so he sat back and waited for more information.

Hello, Professor Flamsteed.

Lux beamed when she saw him walk to the room, but she didn't like how hard a time he had sitting down. Poor man was looking so old out of sorts lately.

As the friendly instructor asked a question, she raised her hand to offer an answer. "Maybe it's because they know us well and are good companions, that can give us a link to home. And maybe sometimes they can help us with magic?" And what else...? Hmmm. Oh, right! "Also, pets are awesome, and make you happier which is always a good thing because people shouldn't be sad!"

Bay thought of his cute little Pgymy Puff Ziggy…. "Because they are cute…" Bay snorted, only if the man knew that he had a blue little fur ball as a pet.. he looked over there and spotted his cat.. oh he didn't see him on his way in… but Bay was glad that Ziggy wasn't in his pocket… he looked like a ball of yarn.

Mitchell thought about the question. He raised his hand. "Along with them being something familiar from home. It could be a social thing." he suggested. "Since there's not really a wizarding formal school before age 11, some social skill could be... lacking." And pets would make those kids less lonely.

That was a polite way of saying that some people might not have friends, right?

Oh! Oh, Alice knew the answer. Hand up.

"Because less of the whining associated with kids not getting their way is wanted." Obviously. Were there really any other reasons for the staff ever doing nice things for them? She seriously doubted it.

After that nugget of wisdom had fallen from her mouth, she resumed staring at the tabby.

Why couldn't they bring their own pets to this thing?

Kitty cat, kitty cat, pretty little kitty cat!

Cat was rather distracted by watching the cat and then taking note of her fellow students, those who seemed to be afflicted with some unknown weirdness, that she hardly noticed that the man had started speaking, let alone had asked a question. Why were students allowed to have pets, hmm? Everyone had good answers, but she thought there was one that applied to all pets in all places, not just Hogwarts. "Taking care of a pet is a good way to learn responsibility and caring for something other than yourself." She added her thoughts, with her hand raised.

Also, she wanted that kitty to come sit with her. Here kitty kitty.

Jeremiah Bode. Mouthing the name to remember it - as a memory technique- Beverly noted it had a nice ring to it. Snapping from that, though, she payed attention to what he was saying.

Wizarding familiars. She didn't have one. Apparently she had to prove she could survive without her dad and brother before getting one. Great job she was doing at that, no?

As for the question she raised her hand up slowly, her finger tips just above head. It couldn't go any higher, okay. "Maybe it's not just for the student's piece of mind, but for the parents," she said, keeping herself from getting nervous. It was okay. There was a kneazle in the room. And kneazles were nice...and fluffy...and warm and-- She was in the middle of answering. Right. "They might feel better knowing their child isn't completely alone."

And she was going to scold her dad. Oh, he was going to hear her. How could he send her to Hogwarts without a pet? Was he that insensitive? And her brother? What kind of manners did his mother teach him? None. NONE. PFFT.

*sudden grump*

Cutty was 100% sure he would never have a pet or a familiar in his lifetime, but he figured it could be an interesting class nonetheless, so there he was. It looked like most everyone exhausted their know-about in response to the first question, so he kept quiet and just absorbed. It had been half a year of mostly absorbing. He kept a calm expression and made mental note over the uses of a familiar and noted Wayne's grumpiness.

Once everyone who had wanted to answer had done so, Jeremiah found himself standing up a little straighter and continuing.

"This question perhaps has no one right answer. The reality of the situation is that there are dozens of reasons students here are permitted a pet of their own. Aside from the various social, emotional and practical uses, particular pets are allowed for students out of a sense of tradition. Traditionally, owls, cats and toads have been seen, particularly by muggles, to have a sort of magic about them, this could well be from way back when, at a time when magic and non-magic folk mingled. When witch- and wizardkind had to go into hiding, eventually these became stories and rumours. I'm sure many of you are aware that one of the reasons a person could be accused of being a witch in those days included owning a cat. Then again, this is perhaps not the most reliable source for determining what is or is not a traditional wizarding familiar."

After all, in those days you didn't even need much of a reason. Still, it wasn't a point he could just leave out.

Now that there was no longer a cat trying to trip him up, Jeremiah was able to pace slowly in front of everyone as he spoke. It was good to do something other than stand completely still.

"Owls, cats and toads are not classed as magical creatures; you do not study them in Care of Magical Creatures, they do not have magical abilities, and muggles are aware of their existence. There are some variations which are magical, such as kneazles, but we're focusing today on the apparently non-magical ones," Jeremiah added, just to make that quite clear. "These animals make very strong bonds with wizardfolk, which does suggest that there is perhaps some dormant magic in them, and have been for centuries.

"Allowing students at a magic school to have a creature companion also allows for both human and animal to strengthen their bond with each other. The animal is known as the magical individual's familiar. 'Familiar' is a term that is only really applied to witches and wizards and their animals; non-magical people themselves even only use the term when speaking of witches and wizards, though in folklore and myths rather than anything accurate."

Jeremiah was starting to become aware that he was talking rather a lot, and decided that leading into the next question was probably a good idea.

"Sometimes the bond between animal and witch or wizard becomes very strong. And sometimes, and this is a rare occurance, the animal instantly becomes what is informally seen as a 'true familiar'. In this instance, the relationship ceases to be simply that of owner and pet. The bond between the two is much stronger; the creature is connected to the human through a magical bond. True familiars are a very rare phenomenon," he took a breath. Yes, that seemed to have covered most of what he'd wanted to say, there.

"How do you think we are able to recognise when an animal is a true familiar, rather than just a very friendly or obedient pet? It's okay if you don't know, just make a wild guess."

OOC :: I'm so sorry this took so long. I'll probably continue in about 12 hours or so/when I wake up 'cause I didn't mean for there to be such a delay T___T

Sander thought for a moment. What made an animal recognizable as a familiar instead of a regular pet? Not having one of his own, he really didn't know what made familiars different, but he decided to hazard a guess.

Raising his hand,Sander gave his answer. "Sir... Uh...animal familiars are constantly seen with their owner and they don't wander off like regular pets normally do. They tend to look like they are vigilant and suspicious when their owner is around people they don't know, like as if they are protecting them."

Well it was a wild guess.