Janelle couldn't help but laugh as the patronus otter moved around the classroom doing his little dance. She was definitely amused, but then it was time for class to begin and her attention turned to the professor. His first question was an interesting one. It was one Janelle had to think about for a moment.

Finally she raised her hand and responded. "I agree with my classmates. The thing that you are forbidden to try is always the most tempting. It always seems way more glamorous than it really is when grown ups tell you not to bother with it. For me though, I always wonder what would make a person go to the dark side. Why would they do it?" Janelle wanted to know about the dark arts as a way to protect herself against it. Knowledge was power, at least that was what she believed.

Merlin, so this was the group he had to watch out for. The ones that thought just because an adult said it was a bad idea, that it was actually a good idea. Problem was, it would take their own step into adulthood to wake them up from their preconcieved notions of adults being sticklers. He knew. He'd been a kid once too.

Which was why, perhaps, he appreciated this line of answering more than most. It made sense. It was almost, expected, and in that way it was an innocent curiosity. Still... "Have you ever heard the saying, curiosity kills the cat?"

Maybe that was a bad saying to start out with. Maybe people would take offence to the killing of cats. Or killing in general. He moved on quickly. "As a word of advice, in my experience, if someone has warned against dark magic, arts or wizards, there is a very good reason they have done so. Curiosity in and off itself is not a bad thing, but you have to be mindful of what consequences may come out of it. And where you get your answers to your curiosity from."



This group of students was a little more concerning, but it was a fresh take and an answer he hadn't really been expecting. Who had thought that young students would be so interested in the minds behind the Dark Arts and Dark Magic, that psychology was a question.

A bit disconcerting. "I can't really give any testiment to sate your curiosity about the minds of Dark Wizards, except to say that it is best if you don't know them." That whole telling a student population not to do things? Right...maybe a bit more. "They are often complex and twisted, and can be so demented as to have you questioning your own morals and choices. There is a fine line between understanding, and pity. One will keep you safe, the other may put you in a very tricky spot."

He wouldn't say that most Dark Wizards had sad stories or interesting pasts, because he was sure most of the students that had offered such an answer were likely to sympathize with them. And that was a recipe for disaster.

SPOILER!!: Answers for Knowledge is Defence

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ginevra

Cilla had always had this sort of question lingering in the back of her mind but she was having trouble conveying the right words. She slowly raised her hand. "I personally think that some knowledge of the dark arts would suffice. The theory aspects of it, of course. I mean, how can we defend ourselves against it if we know nothing about it?" Cilla hoped that Professor Dakest understood what she meant.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Squishy

After a moment, she raised her hand. "I think a lot of people find this stuff fascinating because they don't really know much about it. Plus, it DOES serve as a good advantage to know the evils out there in order to protect yourself against them." That spoke for both dark magic AND dark creatures.

Quote:

Originally Posted by feeheeheeny

But with a raised hand, she offered her own personalized version, "It's the unfamiliar, I think. I mean... MOST of us grow up without direct contact with Dark magic, if we're lucky. There's something enticing 'bout learning about things that scare us, things that can be threatening to us - it gives us a rush, y'know? S'like Muggles with their scary movies, 'cept this is real life for us. And we wanna learn 'bout them for... well, just general curiosity reasons, but also so we know what's out there - curiosity about the world at large, really, and potential dangers... and naturally we wanna learn about these things so we know how to protect ourselves from them. That's normal. S'just human nature to have those kinds of instincts, if y'ask me." .

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mell

[COLOR="SeaGreen'"]He raised his hand to answer the question. "For me it's not curiosity or wanting to break rules, I NEED to know what's out there. What I will be up against when I head out into the real world. Knowledge of every aspect of magic has to be useful, right?"

This, was the answer he still struggled with himself. The benefit of dark magic, of being curious about it and learning about it. And it was also the purpose of their class. Ironic.

But at least he didn't have to worry too much about this group. Thinkers and rational with their interests. It would keep them evaluative and relatively safe. Hopefully some of the other students would pick up on similar mindsets.

He nodded, his patronus walking around him slowly before stopping at his right side. "Very right you are. Hard to defend against something you know little about." But with that knowledge, came the temptation to use and practice. "Hopefully, these DADA classes will answer some of your questions and make you prepared for what you may encounter out there."



These two students got a curious look. Did he have reason to be worried? It sounded like it. He shook his head, watching his patronus stretch out beside him. "Be careful not to confuse power, with a lack of responsibility and accountability. Those that are truly powerful, are those that can defend against the terrible, with restraint and gentleness."

"I suppose then, we need to find a way to learn how regular magic can be just as, or more intriguing, than the Dark Magic." His attention slid to Mancini. "And, in many cases, more powerful. Hopefully, I can show you a bit of that today."



Oh. So there were students who weren't gungho about Dark Magic this and Dark Magic that? Merlin either they were pulling his leg on account of asking such a question, or they were serious. He hoped for the later, and judging by some of the expressions, he was almost positive that was the case.

He gave them both an understanding smile. "No misunderstanding Mr. Fuller-Thompson." He would make sure he got it right from now on, especially on account of the boy's reaction. "I've met a good handful of young adults who are very interested in such things." As were his classmates, but he had asked and he wouldn't berate them for answering.

Kittredge got his soft smile next. "Your answer is just as valuable as everyone else's. The Dark Arts are called such because they can be very mean and scary. A good reason to show restraint and judgement in curiosity and learning."



There were quite a few students who elected not to give an answer. Some looked uncomfortable by the question and others appeared content to listen to their classmates answers. That was fine, and he tried to ignore the Auror-nagging that maybe one or two of them were hiding something.

Kids. Students. Nothing to be suspicious of. And, again, he had asked.



Was that everyone then? Sabel paused a moment, looking out over the gathered students as he waited for another response and let their discussion sink in. Nothing? Time to move on then. "Thank you all for your honest answers and input. As I know the Dark Arts can be a touchy subject, both in rule of speaking and practicing, I want this to remain an open discussion. If you have any further questions, or would like to discuss these topics in more detail, come find me. I'll do my best."

Right then, onto fun stuff. A grin broke free and abruptly his otter patronus disappeared. "Today, I'm going to teach you a skill that many Dark Wizards cannot, and never will, perform. For some of them to even try, it could result in harm to themselves."

Any lights going off?

Clasping his hands lightly on his wand and resting it on his crossed legs, Sabel let his eyes wander to to each student in turn. "What can you tell me about Patronuses?"

Today, was that someday, Mr. Rehman.

------------------------------------------

OOC: Hey all! Sorry this is late. Work and RL >.O

I'll make another post in about 8-10 hours, and class will move forward in about 20-24 hours

Did he buy it? It looked like he did... he was in the clear.

BUT... that whole fair trial thing... was just unnecessary. Didn't he know that the bottom of rivers were great places to cleanse the world of horrible people? It was a matter of fact.

BUT.

This was super exciting, maybe he WOULD find out what his patronus was this year!!!!

AND, he knew thing. Hand stretched UP HIGH, Zeke even bounced on his toes just a touch. Don't try to unfavouritism him by ignoring!!! PLEASE!!!

"To cast a patrons you need happy memories, like truly really happy memories.. not just the happiness that you get from eating a slice of cake for breakfast but the type of happy that reaches your soul... which dark wizards don't have." More or less, let's just say this was him dumbing it down somewhat.

Nooo, don't go otter! Leah was staaaring at the thing when it disappeared. She turned her attention to the Professor as he explained what they were learning today. Something that Dark Wizards could not do... she thought about the Patronus that was present in the classroom just a moment ago and a smile stretched across her face. She was SO excited for this. Unless she was a Dark Witch herself? No way.

A hundred things about Patronuses appeared in her mind at the question. She picked one of them and raised her hand. "A Patronus can be used to drive off Dark creatures," she said. It was like a guard. But much cooler.

Cutty was intrigued. Professor Dakest had a way of coming at the topic from a very logical and rational manner. He was like the less flashy version of Professor Flamsteed. But there was something about him. Piercing and observing that the Slytherin boy found cringe-worthy. It would be hard to sneak anything by him. But that could be an asset as much as a loss. If Professor Dakest wanted to know about why the fascination with the darker side of magic was so prevalent in the recent classes, Cutty could've posited a suggestion based on the history and would if he took the invitation to meet up with him at a later date.

Patronuses. Culloden had shown him how out of necessity, though he'd done the research to find out what they were to begin with. They hadn't been taught at the school in more than 7 terms. He was unsure of exactly how many. Raising his hand, Cutty offered his thoughts on the question given by Professor Dakest. "Yer don't chose yer own patronus. So it doesn't matter however much yer like unicorns or yer pet krup, it'll take whatever form it takes. Could even be something yer afraid of. Like one of the acromantulas from the Forbidden Forest." Too soon?

Blue green eyes made contact with the professor’s eyes as the response was directed to him. Of course, he did not miss the GRIN. The professor was either happy with his answer, or it was because of the Star Wars reference. If it was the latter, then MERLIN’S BEARD...bad news for Airey Flamsteed. Hahaha! Ethan nodded in understanding the moment Dakest explained why he chose to be an Auror. More questions formed inside his head about his choice of career, but he was sensitive enough to know that the place and time was not right.

To be honest, he kind of...enjoyed the discussion part. The group had different takes on the subject, and that somehow quenched his thirst for knowledge. One thing that will probably stick in his mind would be Dakest’s response to Grayson.

Ethan guessed that if Dakest was given the chance to site an example, he’d probably mention Anakin Skywalker’s Turn to the dark side. Poor bloke was desperate...and angry...and afraid...

Wait...what’s the next question again? The Slytherin rubbed his face, and forced himself to be mindful of the Living Force present.

Yes, right, Patronuses. Ethan raised his hand just above his ear, and waited for his turn to speak. “A Patronus, is a positive energy Force coming from the Caster’s most happy and positive feelings. It’s like a Familiar, but is partially tangible. I know they make good messengers.” So...sort of...bad news for the owls?

Zhenya had a good listen to all of the suggestions people were putting out there, as well as the Professor's responses to them. It was interesting, and after him saying how demented dark witches and wizards were she was sure she never EVER wanted to be involved with them. EVER. No, not her. She wanted to do good in the wizarding world. Well, actually, in ALL worlds. Muggle and wizarding worlds. She just wanted to put good things out in the universe, and she was going to do that. But still, it was interesting hearing everything.

Once he had finished, he moved on, and Zhenya's eyes widened in excitement. Maybe they WERE going to be learning how to cast a patronus!! But first he wanted to know what they knew about them. She raised her hand, not really knowing what she was going to say until she started saying it. "Sir, a patronus is a spirit guardian. It protects not only the caster, but those close to them, from Dementors." She knew what the spell was, but that was the most fascinating thing she knew about them. A SPIRIT GUARDIAN. That was just... absolutely ABSOLUTELY fascinating for her. And she was DYING to know what her patronus form was. IF she could cast a patronus, and IF they were actually going to be practicing the spell.

It was interesting to hear the differing opinions of her classmates. This was part of why Lux enjoyed discussions; there were so many things to learn by hearing the thoughts of other people.

Lux nodded at what Professor Dakest had to say, though her eyes never strayed far from his Patronus. She couldn't help it, they were just so neat and she was dying to be able to cast one of her own. That was why she sat up straighter at the question about them. Did this man there was a possibility that she would be able to develop one of her own??? EEEP!!

Raising her hand, she answered the question. "You need a happy memory to cast a Patronus. Like super happy." As far as she knew, the happier the memory was, the more likely one was to succeed.

The whole conversation was really interesting, and Soph watched with admiration as DaBest led the class with ease. He was really a natural at this teaching thing, wasn't he? Open to ideas, not rude in discussing points with students whose comments were strange, and he handled the class very nicely. A good man, he was, and Sophie was even more pleased when the guy acknowledged his incorrect use of Tobes' name. She directed an encouraging smile at the Hufflepuff when the name "Fuller-Thompson" was used, and was quite relieved for him. She knew both names were equally as important to him and was glad the professor complied with his wishes.

When the otter disappeared, Sophie faltered briefly, but she grinned at the man's question. What could they tell him about patronuses? The sixth year listened to others offer up their answers - the happy memory part was mentioned, as was Dark creatures, the form of the patronus being a mystery until casting it successfully, and its use as a messenger and protector - before raising her own hand to add some more to the other students' thoughts.

"Like Zeke alluded to, it's said that only those pure of heart can conjure one. So... Dark wizards typically can't, but... many non-Dark wizards can't do it, too, but it's not because they're not pure of heart - I mean..." Her eyes flickered over to both Toby and Eden very briefly, before returning to meet the professor's gaze, "Some people can't for other reasons, y'know? Like..." Shrug. "Mental health stuff. It's very much a mental AND emotional thing, conjuring a patronus is, and when either one of those states is compromised... well. It's nothing to feel bad about." She forced herself to not look at the two of them this time, her gaze locked with DaBest's, even though she was VERY focused particularly on Tobes' energy from halfway across the classroom. "There's a ton of really awesome, really accomplished 'n successful witches and wizards who've never been able to do one."

She... just needed to have that said aloud, okay? To... reassure, in case the professor wasn't just teasing and he DID intend to teach the class the charm. She knew it was a sensitive area for Tobes in particular, and based upon what Eden had told her before... well.

Soph worried for them.

So, Heather had been one of those that stayed silent after the last question. She really didn’t want to dig into the whys and all that behind dark magic. It was something that made her shudder.

Now they were moving on though. To patronuses. Something much happier. "You need an extremely happy memory. One that can make you smile even in your darkest moment and comforts you when you need it." And had he said they could ask questions? "Is that why they're so bright?" Because she'd heard they could bright enough to act as a extremely large and fancy flashlight.

Ilia had been silent all class, standing still towards the back as she listened intently. The blonde teen had little to say in the matter of interest towards dark magic. She felt listening and observing would serve her better than trying to form a tangible opinion for the professor. Many of her classmates had the intrigue for the dark , to know it more than to embrace it. Some thought it might boast more power. Some thought perhaps you could use it for good. There were a few who could be sympathetic to users who simply fell into the dark arts and then there were those who were frightened or fervently condemned it. Such a mixed bunch her classmates were.........answers like bad boys were hot though, made her wish to palm her face on the professors behalf. Shame, he seemed like such a nice man.....Goodness what would her father have to say if he heard all of that? He'd probably cringe.....

On to something less inclined to produce disturbing answers from her classmates.......What did she know of patronuses? "The Patronus charm is an ancient magic whose origin we are uncertain. A spiritual guardian that requires both great concentration and a happy memory to summon. The tangible form varies between each witch or wizard and you will not know what form yours will take until you can successfully cast it." That was her summary, from utter silence to small speeches. That was just how Freya did things.

Well it looked as though he was forgiven for the gum incident and he had to hide the smug smile when the Professor said that his answer was right. He glanced over at Zahra and grinned.

He didn't get to gloat for too long though as the Dakest was asking them another question. Michael raised his once again. "They're spirit guardians and when conjured protect against dark creatures like Dementors and Lethifolds. They're also good for sending messages too."

What could Rowan say about patronuses? Nothing, really. She'd never heard of them, but from what everyone was saying, the silvery otter was one. Rowan lit up, she was so excited now. Was she going to learn how to do one of those? Then she could have an animal friend whenever she wanted!

Could you choose the animal? Or was it at random? Was it like when Professor Quigley had turned into a cat? Same sort of magic? Or something different?

Whilst she had a lot of questions about patronuses, she didn't actually know anything about them, so she kept her mouth shut.

Cilla was feeling very excited about this lesson already and the mention of Patronuses made her even more excited but she kept a calm exterior. She raised her hand once again. "The form of a Patronus can change if the caster has suffered emotional trauma."

Angel raised her hand. "Professor, aren't they supposed to be really hard to get perfect, like I know in the end your Patronus can take the shape of just about any animal but to get to that level you have to have loads of practice and think about loads of happy thoughts and they have to be strong and powerful thoughts at that.

Whoa! Did the Professor think Janelle wanted to run off and become a dark wizard? She hoped not. She only wanted to know what she might be up against one day........you know, to be prepared.

As the Professor moved on, Janelle began to smile. Now here was a positive topic. Patronuses. Were they going to learn that today? What did she know about them? Raising her hand, Janelle began to speak. "A patronus can keep you safe from a lot of things. But it only works for as long as you can keep a happy memory in your mind. You really have to concentrate and the memory has to be very positive......because if you let the memory go, your patronus will disappear." And you will be out of luck.

Patronus... patronus... Okay. He didn't know if he could cast one since he's just fifteen and usually somebody who is older could cast patronus. Especially a corporeal one. Hopefully no silvery butterfly that will be around this class. The Korean guy thought. He's Lepidopterophobia, fear of butterflies and he didn't want anybody knew about this since it was embarrassing (and some people thought it was weird since butterfly isn't that scary.. fot them).

Raising his hand, Jackson spoke up about what he knew about patronus. "There's a smoke look-like patronus and a creature-shape one. And I think the creature-shape one is more powerful against the dementor. Also... I want to ask, Professor." He continued to ask. "What is the thing that could affect the shape of somebody's patronus? Like.. yours is an otter, maybe there's an experience with that or...?" Well, hopefully it made sense.

Tora grinned, and raised her eyebrows. Of course her earlier guess had been right, why else would the professor have produced a patronus at the start of class? She relaxed a bit and listened to her classmates. They got most everything she had heard of... though, did someone already say they could carry messages? She eyed the general direction where she heard it but decided that perhaps the professor hadn't heard.

"They also carry messages," she started off in solid fact before venturing into speculation. "but, if I remember correctly, the messenger type are more amorphous?"

There, that should do it and if she was wrong then you learn something new every day!

As she sat there listening to everyone elses replies and then the next given question Hady seemed to not be paying attention. Only that wasn't so. In fact she was paying so much attention to what was being said that her head was starting to hurt and she couldn't keep her mind from wandering to what she knew of casting this very hard to achieve spell. Successfully casting a patronus was no easy task.

By the time she had even thought to raise her hand and give an answer the same had happened as earlier. All her classmates had replied and she disliked saying the same thing a million and one times. So she left her hands in her lap and went back to listening.

Would she even be able to cast a patronus if it was so difficult? She knew both her birth parents weren't able to into well into their fifth and sixth year and the same with her adoptive father. Knowing this though didn't stop the third year from wanting to try...maybe hers would be similar to her parents.

Hearing all of his classmates answers got him thinking...curiousity for the taboo was like hidden treasures to their eyes..but unfortunately for him...he had been through such fates of being utterly defenseless in the streets...always in fear that someone out there with sinister minds were there to get him. Henric learnt not to shy away from possible dangers, hence he took up self-defence classes for extra measure if one losses his/her wand.

Henric was right...they were going to learn about patronus which means...there would be dementors! No...it couldn't be...unless...they were facing something else more dreadful? Professor Dakest mentioned to him that the walls were there to hide something in...what was it?...

He listened to his classmates answers..one of them mentioned that in order to be able to cast the spell successfully,he would need to think about the most happiest memory in his life.Was that true? He needed to know more about this great spellwork. It was use to scare away the dementors,right?!

His hand flew up high,"Professor, is it true you need to think about happy thoughts to cast a full patronus?"he queried.

Zander found patronuses interesting. Sophie Brown could do one, couldn't she? And he had seen a few in person, well two that he could think of on the spot. They could only be conjured by powerful wizards, right? Kind of worried Zander a bit. He hadn't ever tried casting one of his own... But could he even do it? Probably not seeing as his Defense Against the Dark Arts scores were always less than average. And as much as he wanted to try and practice... He didn't want to embarrass himself in front of the entire class, as he was most self conscious when it came to his intelligence.

He listened to everyone's answers, trying not to keep too preoccupied with the fact that he might be made a fool in front of everyone. 'Cause he couldn't be the only one who wouldn't be able to get it, right? There were probably loads of others. Sure maybe the others would just include a collection of first years... But Sophie's answers sort of helped. Just 'cause you had to be a powerful to conjure a patronus, didn't mean that you weren't a good wizard 'cause you couldn't.

Or at least that's what Zander hoped. Either way, he jotted down some of what others said before offering up his own hand for an answer. Everyone already talked about the happy memories, but did anyone talk about the actual spell itself? "The incantation itself is Expecto Patronum?" He knew it was right, he had to memorize tons of charms for OWLs last year, but then why did he make it sound like a question.

Curiosity killed the cat? Of course, everyone knew that expression. Except, in Natalia's philosophy, curiosity didn't really kill the cat. Perhaps if the cat was smarter and found a way about the problem, maybe it could have survived. Wizards weren't cats; wizards were a lot smarter than cats. c:

While listening to other students' answers, Natalia couldn't help but laugh at that one student who gave the explanation that 'bad boys are hot'. It wasn't entirely false, of course.

Having heard a lot of about patronuses, Natalia knew some characteristics of them, but she wasn't an expert. "Your otter thing is a patronus!" The fourth year blurted out. That was pretty much about all that she could contribute to the class.

No. No no no no no. This lesson was a DISASTER... a lowkey disaster 'cause that was very negative thinking and HAD to be lowkey. But it was. At least to Toby, because EVERYONE was going along with this IDEA that the Dark Arts were interesting and that people liked them and that there were actual Dark wizards. Did anyone realise how difficult it was to persuade yourself of something when literally everyone else in the room was saying otherwise?

Luckily, Toby was a pro at that. So that's what he continued to do, though... a little more sulky than before, if you can believe it, though he tried not to make THAT obvious, and just fiddled with a thread from his sleeve and wore the straightest face he could muster. Even after Professor Dakest (who, Toby was very grateful to hear, had gone with his preferred name), outwardly told him otherwise, he just sort of shook his head and waited for the guy to move along before whispering "No they're not," very quietly.

*sulk*

...

At first, Toby didn't have a clue what Dakest was on about with the 'skill that many Dark Wizards cannot, and never will, perform', only that it sounded like something that he wanted to LEARN because he could totally show that he was no Dark wizard because thEY DIDN'T EXIST.

Until... UNTIL... he said the word 'patronus'. If Toby wasn't so good at keeping a neutral expression, his face might have fallen. Merlin, he'd heard that all that stuff about Dark wizards (WHO DIDN'T EXIST) not being able to cast patronuses was, like, a total myth. And not just 'cause there was no such thing as a Dark wizard, but for theoretical reasons. He was sure, was SURE he'd read something like that once, but he wasn't going to SAY that because that was almost like admitting that the whole thing was real, and he wasn't going to do that. There was no evil in the world. There was only good, okay? OKAY.

Toby kept quiet for a loooooooong time while people answered Dakest's question, and he DID hear and process Soph's answer, but he didn't know what to think at all. So he just sat there, quietly ruminating on all the things.

Eventually, finally, Toby did look up and raise his hand. "Expecto Patronum, the incantation. It means 'I await a protector', more or less." Aaaaaand that was it. Usually Toby could ramble for DAAAAAYS in his answers in class, but that would do. He went back to fiddling with his sleeve thread.

Adi was happily daydreaming about Patronuses. What form would his take? How LONG would it take him to be able to cast a corporeal one? He was going to badger (no pun intended. Or maybe it was ) Professor Sabel for a few lessons. Yep.
...................

It was best if they not know the Dark Arts? But Adi was CURIOUS! It wasn't as though he wanted to practice them but like he stated, he wanted to know WHY humans choose to harm others. The Restricted Section of the library should have some books that he could read someday to maybe answer his questions. Don't worry, folks. This badger was not likely to go to the dark side. Never in a zillion years!
....................

A Hippogriff patronus would be cool. Too bad they couldn't choose the shape- GREAT FLYING HIPPOGRIFFS! Did Professor Sabel just say what Adi thought he had? Adi was too excited to even speak for a moment so he sat there listening to his fellow students reply. It wasn't until Jackson spoke that he raised his hand. "I think Jackson is referring to corporeal which is where the Patronus that takes a certain form or shape and non corporeal- the one with out a particular shape.'' Obviously.

Uhh, okay. He asked then why they were interested, and then proceeded to tell them that they shouldn't be. Brian sincerely hoped that he understood the fact that he was really only making the situation worse. Besides, it was their opinion, right? Some people weren't all that into it and that was their prerogative, but most were and that was probably due to lack of exposure. He was right, though. It was really dangerous but if all they were being taught was fluffy stuff that didn't relate to how they would defend themselves in real life, obviously they'd be more likely to turn to the dark arts.

What could Brian tell him about a patronus, though? He didn't know much about it, but he knew enough to know that he was PROBABLY not good enough at charms to do it. Especially not at twelve years old. So he said just that. "Oh. It's really advanced magic and I am most probably not going to be able to do it successfully right now. Or any time in the very near future." He was just a second year!