This.....this was the class she dreaded most throughout the school year. Muggle studies. She didn't mind muggles....but she was really pretty clueless about them and she knew it. All muggle question situations were met with anxiety and hiding behind Henric figuratively, not literally. Although she did always make sure that she was right beside him or behind him for this class.

The new rules made no sense to her whatsoever but, she was relieved when she realized that she didn't actually have to make physical contact with anyone. This 'air high five' she likened to the odd greeting with the splitting of fingers as they did to 'Admiral Flamsteed'. But, Ilia really did not understand these professors. What was their infatuation with these muggle 'stickers'!? This was the second professor! Why did she have to stick them to herself!?

Picking out her 'sticker' was a begrudging task, thankfully Henric had taught her a few minor things about his 'video games'. The little 'faces' looked a lot like some of the ones on his game station thing. She picked a green one with the slit like eyes and the downturned mouth. It looked sort of grumpy? Good enough right? At least she hoped. She was glad that at least she didn't have to stick it on her forehead! She put it on the front of her clothes, off to her right side.

Oh snidgets, now she had to name a muggle past time? Henric easily reeled off a list and she sighed a little. She knew the football and video games were what he played, but that was about all that she knew. Oh wait! "Muggles play chess too I think....it is just different." Her voice betrayed her and showed her uncertainty as her accent got a little thicker. She wasn't certain how it was different fully, she thought it was just that without magic the pieces didn't move or talk but, she could be wrong. This was NOT her strong suit.

Energy, man. This room was full of energy, and if possible it just made AJ that much happier. Her smile was firmly planted on her face, and it wouldn't be going anywhere anytime soon. Nope. Adi got a wink back in return, and when the professor began talking about the lesson today, AJ put all of her attention on her.

FUN!

Oh yeah. This was going to be another fun lesson, not that she expected anything less. Her hand shot into the air. "Camping, professor." Outdoorsy stuff. That was always fun. She thought back to the time her and Adi went camping together. Lots of good memories.

Ethan grinned back at the new female student in Hufflepuff robes who gave him a smile and wave, and sent Oliver a fist bump on his shoulder when the first year Slytherin sat beside him. A salute and grin was given to Brooklyn when she sat near him too. Silent, and always calculating, as usual. Of course the older snake wasn’t bothered by this. She always seem to have a good reason for doing it so, anyway.

Moments later, the door to the MS Classroom was shut close, signalling the start of the lesson. Ethan took out his notebook and muggle pen out, and prepared to jot down some serious notes. The Slytherin found himself nodding here and there, agreeing to everything that Moxley said. All hard work should be paid by doing something fun, yeah? Like…study hard, and party harder? Yep.

Ethan raised his hand, waited for his turn, and offered his answer when it was his turn. “Shopping, I suppose? My mum and aunt used to do that after working on a joint project…” Well, that’s what his mum would tell him when she goes and meet up with his aunt…when they were both still alive, that is. The seventh year lowered his hand, and sunk back in his seat.

Natural colour my FOOT, Owen........ uh, whatever your surname was. Phillip tilted his head at the Hufflepuff and gave him a curious look. Really now, it was nothing to be ASHAMED of. Everyone felt hot from time to time. Just loosen your tie or fan yourself, Hufflepuff.

Phillip was about to make that suggestion to him but then Professor Lady started talking so, after giving Owen a smile and a pat on the shoulder, he turned his attention to her instead. Pastimes? Oh, how EASY was this question? The boy was practically beaming as he raised his hand high up into the air. PICK HIM PICK HIM!

"ROCK CLIMBING!" Which looked like it was a LOT of fun, by the way. "There are centres where you can climb rocks safely with instructors standing nearby but that's not NEARLY as fuuuu...... uh......." He cleared his throat. "dangerous as climbing actual large rocky structures and mountains." Innocent!smile.

Now this raised a question: when was his mum going to let him go rock climbing? Hmmmm?

Moxley hated being a downer and was pleased to see that many of the students had taken in what she’d said and moved on, their positivity carrying them past the small hiccup that had occurred in the form of her mini lecture on rules. Now she was able to sit back and listen intently as the kiddos offered up their idea of muggle pastimes and really, they were quite knowledgeable. The brunette was pleasantly surprised, per usual.



Sports seemed to be the big pastime that the students were interested in and Moxley wasn’t at all surprised. It was one of the subjects that muggles and wizards had always shared a passion for, though the games played were quite different.

”Sports are certainly a pastime for muggles all around the world! Whether muggles are playing them or watching them, sports inspire enthusiasm, loyalty, and competition, as well as teamwork. It is also important to note that a sport can be done individually or with a team. They can also be played professionally or recreationally.”


Meredith Moxley had always been a fan of games and the brunette nodded enthusiastically when several were mentioned. They were still definitely a staple in muggle and wizarding communities alike.

”Games, yes!” Big old Moxley grin for the class. ”Games come in many categories. For instance, party games like truth or dare. There are also tabletop games which would include any card games or board games. Any game you can play on your table, hence the name!” She paused, letting people catch up with notes. ”Another big example would be video games. These are electronic, a word Mr. Truebridge was thinking of, I’m sure. Under this category, we can list arcarde games, computer games, and mobile games. “


Ah, the telly. Moxley was definitely a fan! She particularly liked a little old show called Antique Road Show but she could talk about that another time.

”Watching television is certainly popular among muggles! For those unfamiliar with such things, consider how we have moving photographs. Television shows are like moving photographs, but ones that talk and can move through many different scenes, acting out different stories.” That seemed like a good way to explain, yes?

”Going to the cinema is another pastime muggles enjoy. The cinema is a large building where several big screens show stories, similar to the ones shown on the telly. The difference being that the stories are called movies and are longer than ones shown on the television, which are called episodes, and are based around one television show.” That was probably incredibly confusing, yes?

”If anyone has questions on this after class, I’d be more than happy to elaborate! Point being, watching movies and television shows on the telly or at the cinema are certainly popular acitivities!”

”Great addition, Prefect Rehman!” Moxley gave the Hufflepuff a thumbs up. ”Music, whether muggles are listening to it or playing it, is certainly extremely popular among the masses!” And who could blame them, really? Especially when there seemed to be the perfect song out there for every mood or occasion.


Meredith Moxley wasn’t exactly the outdoorsy type but she did like to step out and get some fresh air everyone once in a while. Probably why the brunette could identify with muggles and their love of doing things outdoors.

”There are many muggle pastimes that take place outdoors! Whether it’s something physical like bike riding or rock climbing, or simply sitting at the beach and enjoying the sunshine, muggles enjoy being outside and getting fresh air!”

Hmmm, shopping. Moxley tapped her chin. ”Shopping is one of those things that can go either way. Something like grocery shopping is something you need to do to survive because of food so that might not necessarily be for enjoyement.” Though Meredith certainly loved it. ”But clothes shopping, that is something that might excite and entertain so yes, I’d say shopping could be a pastime depending.” Noting the boy’s change in posture, Moxley gave him a reassuring smile and moved on.


Crafting! Moxley was something of a crafter herself! She didn’t have herself one of those fancy craft tables or anything because her husband refused to indulge that hobby but she would be using that on the reg if she did!

”Very good! Crafting is when one uses their skill to create something. Knitting and scrapbooking are indeed very good examples!” Two thumbs up for those. ”My daughter and I make jewelry together sometimes. She’s a big fan of beading which would be covered under crafting as well!”


Uhhh…ehhhhh…errrrrr….okay.

Moxley was going to speak to Mr. Bellaire first. ”I’ve never actually thought of eating as a pastime, actually. Well, unless you were one of those people who entered eating contests. I’d say that could be considered one. Still, food is a passion for some people. Something like cooking would fall under a pastime as people get great enjoyment out of it.” She’d have to think on this some more, yes. ”Interesting suggestion, Mr. Bellaire! I like the way you think.”

Moving on to the Slytherin Prefect now, yes? ”Those moving staircases are called escalators, actually! Fascinating things though some people find them a bit scary.” Silly, really. They were so helpful! ”I’m not quite sure I’d say those are a pastime, more a means to get to a place requiring less effort on your part. Still, good thinking!” It was a unique answer and a good try, if nothing else.


”They do love to read, yes!” Enthusiastic nodding from Moxley. ”Reading is one of the pastimes that muggles and wizards and witches have in common! While we read for work and for school, reading can be for leisure, too. I do hope some of you partake in this pastime.”

Oh, another answer she hadn’t thought she’d hear. ”I’m not quite sure party hosting would be considered a popular pastime. It can be stressful at times, what with the planning and making sure everyone stays entertained. Still, there are those who do enjoy the act so I’m glad you brought it up. It’s definitely one of those activities that could go either way.”


There were always students in class who preferred to listen and while Moxley encouraged participation, she was glad to see that those few at least seemed to be paying attention to what was being said. Hopefully they’d jump in later in the discussion.

Bowling, yes! Moxley chuckled at Ms. Lynch and then shook her head. ”That’s a perfectly acceptably answer and you’re right on the money! Let’s discuss bowling a bit more, shall we?”

Eyes on the class as a whole, Moxley addressed the group. ”Bowling is extremely popular among muggles and to be good at it, you need technique as well as practice! Please raise your hands and offer up one thing you know about bowling. Those of you unfamiliar with the sport should be taking notes!”

Bowling? BOWLing? Boooooowling. Evangeling was not familiar with the so called sport having to do with bowls. She was familiar with several muggle things, since she grew up around a lot of muggles, but she was not familiar with this sport. But they wore uniforms while bowling, and apparently Moxley was wearing one of them.

Instead of guessing and probably sounding like an idiot, Evie pulled out her notebook and a pen and titled the page "BOWLING". She would spend the next few minutes taking notes instead of contributing because she was lost.

Angel loved this game and had been with a few friends over the summer, it was one of their favourite activities. She quickly raised her hand. "Professor you have to try and get a strike." Angel always thought that was cool, though she had a feeling it wouldn't be nice if she was the one getting knocked over.

Oh, Daxton knew something about bowling, alright. Just the thought of it had him glaring straight ahead at the wall up at the front of the room. Bowling was loud. They had tried to take him once, and he had hated it. Had not even made it more than two steps inside the building that housed the bowling alleys before the avalanche of noise and totally freaked out. Since then he had hated bowling.

That would have been his answer - the loudness - had he been able to verbalise it. Not that he expected anyone in this room or even at this school to understood what he meant; they were all so loud here, though not quite as bad as the bowling alley had been, that Daxton was starting to believe that very few people in the wizarding world even understood the concept of volume control.

Especially Gryffindors.

This lesson was going to be loud, wasn't it?

Oh, it was pronounced e-lec-tron-ics. And telly was the same thing as tel-e-vision. Right, Davie would try his best to study these things up, so he wouldn't be embarrassed the next time the professor mentioned him by name in class. As it were, the first year kept his head down and his pink ears to himself as he carefully wrote a whole lot of example muggle pastimes.

Anyway, bowling! Well he'd never tried sports before but at least this was one he'd probably heard of! "There's a bowling alley in Diagon alley," Davie volunteered. "You play with shrunken heads." How cool that Muggles were inspired to do the same! Bless them!

Oliver had never been bowling, but he had heard about it. In his family, they weren't completely ignorant about muggles like some wizards were. If they had to blend in with the muggles, and pretend to be non-magic, then it only made sense that they should at least know how they live. Right? That's why he thought muggle studies was a useful course for some. Though it seemed pointless for those who already knew things.

Anyway.

He raised his hand. "You have to be really strong. Because the balls are really heavy." They weren't like tennis balls, or baseballs. They were really huge, really heavy ones. Olly did not think he would like a sport that required so much effort to play.

The enthusiastic response made Paulina feel good for the answer she had given. Of course reading was a big pastime. She loved to read, as did many muggles. It was nice to have something in common with them among all the differences.

Taking out her notebook, she wrote 'BOWLING' on top of a blank page.

The subject of class sounded fun, but Paulina wasn't too familiar with the muggle version - or the wizarding one at that. She'd played in Diagon Alley before at least. Raising her hand, she offered an answer. "Muggles hit things called pins. I believe they are white with a red stripe on them." Or something like that. She at least knew they were white.

Oh, BOWLING!

Kate knew a little about that sport, because there was a Shrunken Head Bowling Alley in Diagon Alley. Granted she'd never played a game there, but she at least had an idea about what went on there.

She raised her hand. "My friend used to go to the bowling alley a lot, and they had really good nachos there! She said they usually sale them at all the bowling alleys she's been to," she offered. "Are we going to eat nachos today?!"

EXCITING!

Woot her answer had been right! Mentally giving herself a pat on the back Hady grinned at Professor Moxley. Sure her answer was probably a given seeing as the outfit the professor wore could've been hint but she was still right.

Anyhow they were moving on and another question was asked. "You have to wear special shoes called bowling shoes to protect your feet in case you drop the ball." Yeah and that hurt. They could all just take her word on it since she'd done it before. Not once but twice. It was never plesant.

Bowling.

Had Dante ever gone bowling before. Hmm... that would a no. His parents never went and probably did not think much of it to actually bring him and his brother on a family trip to go bowling. He hardly even knew what it was. Maybe had something to do with horrible outfits and bowls.

That was his best guess.

If it was extremely popular. Why did they have to wear clothes like that.

That had to be the first question asked but he guessed he would be taking notes for now.

Bowling... Was amazing!

Noelle wasn't that good at it... But she loved it.

Raising her hand, she was eager to answer. "There's these heavy balls with three holes and you stick your fingers in the hole and then you throw it down the lane and hit these pins. There's ten of those... And you have to hit them down. But you can also get gutterballs when you get into the grove along the side of the lanes."

Okay... Take a breath Noelle. HEAVE.

The other students had named a lot of the Muggle pastimes that Milo was sure to write down in his notes. The television and cinema was especially interesting and he had seen some of this stuff when he'd gone into the village with his mom. She didn't like for him to watch it though. Even when his dad was alive they hadn't had one in the house.

Bowling was the topic for the day then? He assumed it was since it was being discussed on its own apart from the other games mentioned. He didn't really know much about bowling or that Muggles did it. He'd seen the one in Diagon Alley though. "Yeah, there's one in Diagon Alley." He chimed in with his hand raised. "Do the Muggles do it the same as witches and wizards?" Did they have shrunken heads or did they use...something else?

She LIKED the way he thought. Did anyone else HEAR that??????

Blaise beamed brightly at the woman, his dimples ever present in the action because Professor Moxley liked the way he thought and he didn't even NEED magic to do it. This had to be the bestest class he'd been to since he got here. It was almost enough to have him bouncing in his seat--but he wouldn't 'cause he was all kinds of mature now. Yup. Mhm. Luckily his quill had jutted that down. It would look epic on paper later.

Ooh and they were talking about bowling?

"Yeah! What," Four Eyes, "Davie said! We have a bowling alley in Diagon Alley. I didn't know muggles did that too. My dad says they spook easy. How do they get pass the shrunken heads?" Did they close their eyes when they bowled? That couldn't work. How would they hit anything that way? Wouldn't the heads make fun of them?

"Are we bowling? Can I go first?" Please? Yes?

Bowling, huh?

So today they're gonna go bowling? Interesting! She had played it several times with Dima, and it seemed easy but actually it's not. "You need to focus and concentrate to play bowling so you can hit the strike. Which means you can hit all ten pins in one throw." The Gryffindor said once she raised her hand. And speaking of the shrunken head bowling at the Diagon Alley, Ava had never tried them since when she was there, she spent most of the time playing the arcade games.

Colt didn't really have to take notes because he knew everything people mentioned. Bonus of having a muggle father and mother. Well his mother was a witch but still loved to do muggle things. He did make a mental note though and now they were on the topic of bowling. He actually loved the game of bowling and was always up for a game. He actually had a pretty great throwing arm. Now he needed to offer up one fact? He thought about it and then raised his hand,

"Professor I know if you get three strikes in a row it is called a Turkey. Don't ask me why but that's what it is." He always wondered why it was called a Turkey. He kept asking and no one knew. He hoped they were going bowling today that would be epic!

Janelle listened as her classmates listed various muggle pastimes. Then the discussion turned to......oooh bowling. Now there was a topic that Janelle didn't mind discussing. She had been bowling lots of times and it was so much fun. Raising her hand, Janelle waited patiently for her turn to speak.

"When you bowl, you keep score and the score comes up on a screen above you. Oh and they have really good french fries at bowling alleys." Just saying. That was a random comment, but hey, food was important.

Not a single word, and a bit of a glare, but the kid put on the sticker and stopped looking quite so stricken. No hugs, then, but she had averted a meltdown, which was pretty much a job well done here. In normal situations, Dot would be stung by the obvious rejection, and the staring at her shiny badge, and... just... the unwillingness to be friends. But in this situation, she just wanted to put stickers all over the ickle's face until he smiled.

Sorry about your luck, kiddo, but there was a Slytherin who liked your face.

"That's the spirit. If you can make someone happy at no cost to yourself, why not do it, right?" She slid back into her seat because the lesson had properly started now. "Daxton, is it? You let me know if you need anything, okay?"

Quote:

Originally Posted by TakemetotheBurrow

Moving on to the Slytherin Prefect now, yes? ”Those moving staircases are called escalators, actually! Fascinating things though some people find them a bit scary.” Silly, really. They were so helpful! ”I’m not quite sure I’d say those are a pastime, more a means to get to a place requiring less effort on your part. Still, good thinking!” It was a unique answer and a good try, if nothing else.

Ooooh. Esca-laters. Dot considered that answer for a full half minute before raising her hand. "Important follow-up question, Professor. Can we ride an esca-later? And why can't Muggles walk up normal stairs? Do their legs not work correctly? Also..." Oops. She made a sheepish face and rolled out her parchment to show she really WAS on task. "We can talk after class. About riding the esca-later. Sorry."

Now then... she'd just write everything down, but when was someone going to mention the bowl part of bowling?

Henric gave llia a thumbs up. "Good try, llia." he whispered to her. He remembered playing wizard chess with llia one time.He was very bad at it. Anyhuu...He knew she wasn't the best at knowing the different types of muggle favourite pasttime and activities there were but he was sure there wasn't much difference in it. Okay...maybe a few. Besides,Henric was always there to help her out in her muggle studies whenever she needed.

They were going to go bowling today or something? OHH COUNT HIM IN! Bowling was one of his favourite muggle pasttime as well. It was a great way to spend quality time with family and friends. They even held birthday parties over there too. He raised his hand up,"You go to a bowling alley to play, sometimes we are required to wear appropriate bowling shoes to play. the floorboards can get mighty slippery if you're not careful during the game. But if you don't have them, they are always up for rent." Yup.

OH. Zander knew this one. Though some others looked a lot more eager to have their go. So Zander waited until there was a quiet moment before raising his own hand. "You're not supposed to cross a certain point of the lane 'cause if you do, it'll trip off this buzzer." He knew because of experience. Ahem. "I think it's got something to do with slippery floors beyond the line... But uh, not completely sure."

Or maybe they just wanted to make the game harder. Challenges were always fun. Either way, did this mean they were going to bowl in class today? Because that'd be nice. Not having to worry about nonverbal spells. This is why Muggle Studies was a great class. One of his favorites, actually. Well... Sort of.

Apparently muggles did a whole lot of stuff, which she already knew because people did a whole lot of stuff in general, but it had become painfully evident now that she had to write them all down. A few students had already answered Professor Moxley's next question by the time Norah set her quill down to give her hand a little shake. MAN. Wasn't this supposed to get easier with age or something? 'Cause writing was much harder than she'd remembered it to be. Or maybe she felt like this at the beginning of every term, who was keeping track. Not her, that's who.

She put a hand in the air and didn't wave it around like a Real Mature Prefect. She'd gone bowling before, uh huh. She'd been much smaller than she was now, but that didn't keep her from remembering that she'd been better at it than Sebby, 'cause nobody was every better than Sebby. It was practically worthy of a national holiday, or at least it would be if she could remember when it'd actually happened. "There's this line before the long thingy that you're not allowed to step over, or else it makes a buzzing noise. And the people who work there don't think it's very funny if you step over it over and over just 'cause the noise sounds cool, which is a shame because it IS funny." Some people just had their priorities all wrong.

Bowling? The only exposure Sophie had to the sport was the Shrunken Head Bowling in Diagon Alley, which she'd done with Tobes before and they even SAW PROFESSORS THERE. Javy, Piers, and Kitridge, hanging out outside of school. HILARIOUS, that had been. Professors outside of their natural habitat. THE BEST.

Otherwise... she didn't know much about it at all, just besides that the Muggles used an actual ball instead of Shrunken Heads to bowl with. She figured it was the same general concept, though. Same name, same sport, just different mediums or something like that?

It was cute that Davie made the first mention of the wizarding sport, too, though. He was a smart little cookie.

Really, though. Sophie... had absolutely nothing helpful to add to the conversation, so she was READY TO WRITE AND TAKE NOTES. That was all she could do, really, if she didn't want to throw out a funny answer like some of the others had. Nah, she'd just lay low until she could offer up something constructive.