|
Transfiguration Lesson Two: Serpents and Flames As Celestia bent over her oaken desk at the front of the classroom, marking yet another ream of homework, she glanced towards her watch and noted that she had only five minutes until the clock would strike nine. She gathered up the stack of parchment and promptly locked into a drawer of her desk, before her brown eyes roved the classroom. It did not much resemble the usual rows of desks that formed neat lines across the classroom. All of the desks seemed to have vanished except for her own. In their places stood lines of plump, red cushions on the floor for students to sit on. The other usual trappings of the room -- the tea table, the four pillars of bluebell flames in the corners -- had been removed as well, giving the room a strangely bare feel. There was no denying that the room now resembled more of an empty, open space than anything else. There was one other peculiar feature about the classroom today; the floor had a fluid, spongy quality that made for a slightly bouncy experience as it was stepped on. Normally, Celestia would have warned students as they entered about the strange floor, but she felt slightly...unnerved by the quality of the homework she'd just been marking, and the spells she'd cast upon the floor slipped her mind completely. As the clock finally struck nine in the morning by Celestia's watch, she waved her wand carelessly at the classroom door and allowed it to CREEAKK open. Much quieter than her usual BANGs, but then Celestia meant to set a more serious tone for this particular lesson. OOC: Welcome to the second OOC Transfiguration lesson of the term! I'm sorry for the late notice on this one. Feel free to jump in at any time! Simply pretend that your kid has been here all along to avoid IC consequences for being late. LESSON PROGRESSION: Arrivals and Questions 1 and 2 Lecture and Mini Activity Main Activity Instructions |
After quickly stuffing the remainder of her pumpkin muffin into her mouth, she entered the transfiguration classroom and nearly wobbled to the floor. She looked down to see if she had stepped on something, but only saw the floor below her. "How strange" she whispered through her last bite of muffin. She paused, feet feeling all floaty, and noticed the desks were gone. In their place, comfy looking red cushions. "Good morning, professor. Looks like we are in for an interesting lesson today." She was still holding her bag of pumpkin mini muffins "Would you like a muffin?" She smiled brightly and slowly walked her way towards the red cushion closest to her, making sure each foot was firmly in place before lifting the next. "Don't worry, I won't be snacking on them during the class." But she would be right after. The smell was glorious and the first three she had eaten on the way had only taken the edge off her ravenous appetite. |
Maddie approached the Transfiguration classroom with a certain bounce in her step. She was in a good mood, because Transfiguration was one of the few classes that hadn't had a year-long assignment given out. Maddie was so behind in all those assignments. She didn't even want to think about it too much! The door was open, so she made her way in. She'd only taken a few steps in, when she became aware that there was something a little...off about the floor. Was she about to faint or something? Or was the floor really that spongy? "Good morning, Professor!" she said, ignoring the floor for the time being. She made her way to a red cushion and started getting herself situated. As she sat down, the cushion had a little more bounce to it than usual. Was that the floor again? |
Slate entered the classroom and immediately stopped. He tapped his foot a few times. Was it just him... or did the floor feel weird? He made a face and took a few tentative steps. Huh. That was weird. "Morning, Professor." he said, his voice wavering slightly because he was still weirded out by the floor. No sooner than the greeting did he realize that something else was different -- there were cushions. Erm? He took a seat and then shifted his feet a little. Today was weird. |
He liked Transfiguration he had to admit. So Septimus was sure to be on his way from breakfast with enough time before the 9oclock opening of the classroom. Except when he stepped through the now opened door, he was greeted with a relatively bare classroom pretty different from the usual set-up the professor usual had for her room. Judging by the reactions of his classmates already there, he could tell he wasn’t the only one taken aback. “Good morning Professor,” Ravenclaw greeted the woman politely before moving further inside the classroom. He guessed the cushions would do for desks and chairs, the second year moving to take a seat without much hesitance. Surely they would find out what was what when the lesson officially began. |
The first thing that Ronan noticed upon entering the classroom was the weird quality of the floor. "Spongify?" he asked, plopping down on one of the cushions. The second thing he noticed was a smell. One that had him slightly annoyed and concerned. "Whoever has the pumpkin, keep it away from me, please and thank you." Last thing he wanted was a repeat of the Duro lesson. How were those things even still available? I mean, weren't they a fall blooming fruit/vegetable/whatever? And this was spring..... He honestly wondered about his luck at times. |
Mentions of Emmalyn and Ronan. Daisy entered the classroom, taking in the layout of the room. "Good morning, Professor," she greeted as she carefully made her way to a cushion. Was it her imagination or was the floor extra springy? As she sat down, Daisy whispered to Emmalyn and pointed at her basket of pumpkin muffins, "Make sure that Ronan doesn't come into contact with those. After all, he's very allergic to pumpkins." |
Why were all the classrooms basically empty these days? The question flitted through Stasya’s mind as she made her way into the Transfiguration classroom, also curious due to the lack of the usual startling bang of the door to announce the start of the lesson. Basically, it felt like she ought to be expecting something, and given past experiences, it wasn’t anything good. She had cookies, though. If they became necessary. She’d made her way toward a red cushion, however, bouncing slightly with every step. It reminded her of when she’d cast Spongify on the floor in the dueling hall so Emmeline wouldn’t hurt herself and her bestie had done the same, which put a smile on her face that she easily turned in the professor’s direction. “Good morning Professor Grimsbane.” After the greeting, she dropped into her chosen cushion, placing her bag carefully next to herself before settling in to wait for the lesson to officially start. And definitely keep the pumpkin far away from Ronan. They didn’t need another incident. |
Transfiguration wasn't one of her favourite subjects. Honestly, she'd been spending more time concentrating on her muggle exams, since they were the ones that really mattered to her. But, she really did need to pass her NEWTs too. Hattie intended on studying at a Muggle University, but she wanted a back up plan. That was wy she was nice and early to the Transfiguration lesson. The seventh year had her bag tucked under her arm and smiled as she wondered into the classroom. She noticed a few things. The floor felt weird. And the classroom was pretty bare. Hmm. Interesting. "Hello Professor" She murmured with a smile, glancing around and nodding at her fellow peers that were already here. After this, she found herself a pillow, and sat herself down. |
If Jessa Cambridge noticed or felt any particular way about the change in the floor, it did't show. Dull, inattentive eyes barely spared the floor--or the class' new decor--more than a passing glance before settling on the plump cushion chair she would be choosing. It was one by a window for when she inevitably began to zone out in the lesson. "Hello, Professor." She offered, her tone neither upbeat nor particularly down. By now, the monotone may have been something of a common occurrence as the Ravenclaw found it harder and harder to be enthused about lessons. What was the point? She couldn't remember the last time she'd been challenged. Preparing for the lesson ahead, Jessa sat cross legged and trained her gaze on the outside. Hopefully something would catch her attention. |
Walking into the classroom, Rylee paused mid-step for a fraction of a second when something didn't feel right. The floor beneath her feet didn't have that typical solid feel to it that it should have. No, there was indeed more of a sponge-like quality to the floor this morning. Bouncing a little on the balls of her feet she giggled quietly very much continuing to bounce her way towards a large red cushion near the front of the room. "Good morning, Professor," Rylee greeted her with a bright smile. Plopping down onto her chosen cushion she sat cross-legged. Her bag was placed at her side then before she took a better look around the room. It was rather bare and boring looking but at least they had cushions to sit on and the floor was fun to walk on. Was that also pumpkin she smelt? |
Ronan, Daisy, and any other pumpkin smellers Quote:
Quote:
"If anyone wants a muffin, I'm happy to share after class. We can wait until we are out in the corridor. They are really good, at least I think they are." |
Josephine came into class, brushing her brown hair back again. She shouldn't have agreed to have it cut, it use to reach her lower back before, now it came to just below her shoulders and she couldn't make it stay out of her face for the life of her... Though it was admittedly nice to not have to spend a half hour brushing it out now, and that was if she didn't feel like having it curled or looking particularly nice and neat. She gave a nod to the professor, "Good morning, Professor." The third year gave a smile and went to her usual seat kind of away from everyone else. She was kinda use to being on her own anyways, in a way it was nice, because when she was home she was surrounded by eight other children... all of whom were younger than her. Still though... She glanced at the other kids and gave a small sigh, wishing she wasn't so afraid of interacting with others. It just seemed they either didn't care for her to join or she was just bothering and not adding anything to the conversation. So alone she would probably stay. |
Max rushed into Transfiguration, worried that he was going to be late. The scrambled eggs in the Great Hall were just soooo good he'd needed a second helping..... and maybe a third helping and yeah. It was easy to lose track of time! The moment he stepped into the classroom he knew something wasn't quite right though. Bouncy. Squishy. Okay. At least he wasn't late. He nodded a greeting in Professor Grimsbane's direction and then found himself a cushion to sit on. Taking notes without sitting at a proper desk was always annoying ughhh. |
Skylar had every intention to arrive to Transfiguration early. But then she got distracted. And forgot that she had to climb up SO many staircases just to get to the classroom. She was definitely NOT going to miss this when it came to future studies post-Hogwarts. Practically taking the steps two at a time, she grinned to herself mostly, when she arrived at the Transfiguration Classroom to find the door NOT slammed shut which meant she wasn't late. Thank you her quidditch training and daily running; at least it was good for something. Something she did not expect though when she stepped into the classroom was the softness of the floor. "What the---?" The She-snake blinked, staring around. It was KIND of like a trampoline, but not. Actually it was more like she was walking on a giant sponge. Carefully walking towards an empty seat, she made a brief nod of acknowledgement towards the Professor, who was grading their last assignments. "Morning Professor. Was my essay okay?" she asked, chewing on her lower lip and turned to sit. That was when she realized the usual desks weren't there, but cushions? Uhhh.... okayyy then. |
As Skyler walked in, she blinked. Well, we have red cushions. Again? She couldn't remember. She did feel a weird emotion though as she walked through. It felt as if she was going to cry. Even so, she smiled a bit at the professor as she walked in. |
Questions 1 and 2 SPOILER!!: Individual Replies At precisely 9:05 AM, Celestia lazily waved her wand towards the classroom door and allowed it to slowly CREEAKK shut again. The professor got to her feet and moved carefully around the Disillusioned items that were currently hidden behind her desk until she faced the class as usual. Recent events -- namely, those mysterious coins that the lake seemed determined to periodically dredge up -- had left the Transfiguration professor feeling very uneasy. There was nothing wrong with any of the objects, of course, and Celestia recognized that this lesson’s topic was most likely born from a sense of paranoia, but she felt that she had to do it. The events of the Muggle Studies field trip from last term hung at the back of her mind and only increased her determination to broach this topic now. ”Good morning, class,” Celestia began. ”Today, we will be learning some new spells that should be of great use to you if you ever find yourselves facing a wizard’s duel, a Dark creature, or some other such encounter. Obviously, these will be Transfiguration spells so I would like you to please name one Transfiguration spell that you think could be used against an opponent and give one possible scenario where this spell would come in handy during a duel.” She knew that there was going to be some opposition to this, and the activity that was to follow, since this wasn’t a Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson -- but she had Professor Hirsch’s blessing as far as teaching spells in this context went. However, Celestia’s determination to teach students practical uses for the spells she taught them also steered her away from caring about such criticisms. OOC: Thank you guys so much for coming! There’s a lot of things going on in the RP at the moment, so I’m combining the usual 2 questions into one post for you. In other words, we’ll move on to the activity right after this rather than having you make an additional post for question 2. To get full credit, Q1 = Name a Transfiguration spell that could be used in a duel and Q2 = Give an example of how you would use that spell in a duel -- so just identify the spell and give an example. I’m still following the grading rubric in the rules post, so remember that your kid doesn’t have to answer correctly or out loud at all to get full points for these. You have 48 hours to get your answers in. We’ll move on at 12 AM CDT on July 20. Feel free to get in touch if you have any questions. |
Daisy furrowed her brow in concentration as she thought of an answer. Soon, she had slowly raised her hand. "I believe the Incarcerous Spell might be effective in that the caster could cease or at least restrict his or her opponent's movements. That impedes any spellcasting from the opponent." |
Her eyes followed Professor Grimsbane as she walked in an extra careful manor out from behind her desk. It made her wonder if the floor was the cause of her caution or if there was something else. Either way, class had started and her quill as to parchment and ready to take notes. Transfiguration charms that could be used for protection. She had to sit quietly and think a moment about which one and how it could help her. After Daisy had given what seemed to her a great answer, she slowly raised her hand. "Professor, I think I could use Herbifors on an attacker. It wouldn't exactly hurt them, but if I could cast herbifors on them, it would make flowers grow out of them and that would be very distracting. Hopefully distracting enough that I could either cast another defensive spell, or get away." She wondered if that was the type of answer the professor was looking for. Short of turning the person to stone, she wasn't sure how transfiguring them would work out better than simply trying to disarm them. A good 'ol protego or even expelliarmus seemed like it would be quicker and more effective. However, she didn't know what new and fancy transfiguration spell Professor Grimsbane had planned. It might be better than she thought. |
Anna was curious to see why the floor had been enchanted to be spongy and bouncy, and as soon as duelling was mentioned, she perked up. She wasn't the biggest Transfiguration fan like her brother, but that lesson started to sound much more interesting all of a sudden! The Gryffindor had to stop and think when the professor asked the first questions. She did know loads of duelling spells - not that she could cast all of the ones she knew of, but that was beside the point - but the question was specifically aimed at Transfiguration spells that could be used for duelling, and that made things a bit less easy. She finally raised her hand. "The Bat-Bogey Hex, professor." Anna started, sitting on her feet so she could sit up taller as she developed her answer. "It'd be pretty hard for someone to concentrate and cast other spells at me if they had bats coming out of their nose. And I guess Dark Creatures would also have bogeys that could be turned into bats." If not, then she'd have to think of another spell if she ever faced a bogey-less Dark Creature. |
Max raised his arm and cleared his throat. "Duro would work, right? Just turn your opponent into stone and then they won't be able to come at you anymore." Simples! He preferred the bat-bogey hex answer though. For sure. That was a good answer and he'd definitely be down for learning that in today's lesson. Fingers crossed. |
in To be perfectly honest, Jessa hadn’t heard the question or the prelude to the question the Professor had posed. While she wasn’t quite so captivated by anything on the outside of the window just yet, her mind had already began its bit of wandering. It thought of the summer break that would come in less than two months and a solid plan she and her father had worked through to ensure she was a little more gainfully occupied moving forward. All around her, her classmates were rattling off spells and at first she couldn’t figure out why but the context of the responses pretty much spoke for themselves after that. They’d been asked to ponder something of similar nature before and if she remembered correctly, her own response had been met with a look of concern. It was in line with Max’s answer. Turning them to stone—or their hearts if she remembered correctly. For a moment, the Ravenclaw considered offering up a response but when she ran it through her head it sounded like just the thing to earn her a frown. One might think that under those circumstances one might opt to change their response and participate in the discussion but no, she’d rather keep her gaze trained out the window and pretend she wasn’t listening. |
Josie paused, hadn't Brodie used several different ones? Her father, was a dirty cheater at tag when they were younger whenever he got too tired of running after her and her siblings, "Wouldn't Incarcerous work, professor? It's hard to attack or go after someone if you have something wrapping around you, holding you back." She nodded slightly and thought again of her father using it to harmlessly wrap them up. At least her siblings thought it was funny, she would probably always say he was just a sore loser to when his children beat him. |
SPOILER!!: Professer Skyler sniffed and rubbed her eyes. Why was she feeling a need to cry? She sighed and tried an answer after raising her hand. "I forgot the spell professor but maybe one that can turn your enemy into an animal? You know, you can turn them into a rabbit or something so you can run away?" |
Yay, his correct guess had earned Gryffindor much needed extra points! Hopefully, they could keep up that momentum through the rest of class..... Obviously someone wasn't at all familiar with the villain named Poison Ivy if they thought that flowers growing out of a person wouldn't hurt them, a thought that had him smirking. "I would go with Epoximise. Someone can't come after you if they're stuck to the floor." Honestly, he had thought of Glacius first, but then that wasn't Transfiguration. |
| All times are GMT. The time now is 05:34 AM. |
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.4
Copyright ©2000 - 2025, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
LinkBacks Enabled by vBSEO 3.3.2 © 2009, Crawlability, Inc.
Site designed by Richard Harris Design