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Divination Lesson; dendromancy in the Forbidden Forest
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Jade arrived at the stump a little before noon for her Divination lesson. Even after a month of classes, she was not sure how she felt about the subject. It was... interesting, though she was very confused most of the time. "Hello," she greeted Thereos with a smile, before she took a look around. Her dark brown eyes lit up when she saw the bowl filled with colourful flowers. Oooh, were they doing something with flowers today? They were so pretty! At the centaur's instructions, she carefully picked two of the most beautiful flowers and - oh. Uhhhhh, okay. She quickly returned one to the bowl, pretending that she had never picked it up in the first place; if they were to CONSUME these flowers, she'd only take one, thank you. And so Jade took the time to get acquainted with her flower. It was violet - that is, the colour was purple - the petals were soft, they felt fragile and she took care to be very gentle with her touch. She raised it to her nose and smelled it, it had a pleasant fragrance to it, not too intense. Now to move on to the final sense. She could not help but chuckle slightly, realising that what she was doing was... really weird. Like, way beyond the normal Divination weird-weird. She took one last look at her flower and slipped it into her mouth. It tasted bitter at first, the texture unfamiliar on her tongue. Then there came the first wave of floral flavour and she was mildly surprised by how much she liked it. Curious, she continued to focus on the flower on her tongue and allowed the flavour to fill her mouth. After a while, she swallowed the flower and smiled slightly, half out of amusement, but half because really, that was quite a nice experience. |
Although, divination was a little low on her list when it came to electives, Missa just wanted to do this because their teacher was going to be a centaur. Furthermore, when she found out they were going to have a class near the forbidden forest - she couldn't be MORE EXCITED. Because if they were going to be near it, who is to say they might not visit it too? It was certainly on her invisible list of things to do before her Hogwarts time came to an end. She greeted Thereos when she neared the stump, and passed him a pleasant smile - before getting on with his instructions. They were weird, but ... if she was doing this - she might as well do this as thoroughly as possible. She picked two flowers, the ones that seemed striking to her the most - before finding herself a spot. And then slowly she bit into them, sensing and savouring them. |
For the girl that usually wore skirts to classes, Hanna felt strange in the pants she was currently wearing. The only pants she would usually wear were stretchy for dance. These were not. Still, pants were the least of her worries as she approached the Divination class by the Forest. She didn't particularly find Divination a subject which was enjoyable, but had decided to continue with it. Although, to her pleasant surprise, Divination taught by a Centaur felt much more reliable than when it was taught by humans. Hanna approached the gathering students, nodding a greeting. "Hello Professor." |
Sammy had grabbed two flowers at random. Finding a spot to linger, out of the way, until the lesson began. While he didn’t particularly enjoy this class he didn't hate it either. And he did enjoy the opportunity to learn from a centaur. He looked around the space, noticing the three Ravenclaw girls. Was he going to be the only guy here? He listened the professor waxing on about slowing down and savoring things. He wondered if this lesson was going to be anything like a yoga class that his mom liked to take. He opened his palm to find an arugula flower and lavender. Interesting choices – if you were going to make a salad. He decided to start with the arugula flower. Popping it into his mouth, he was met with a burst of pepper. Bleck – he made a face, but kept chewing. |
Kaiser had his hands shoved deep into his pockets as he approached the stump at the edge of the forbidden forest, eyes on the ground before him. When he reached the site of the lesson, he stopped and looked up at their centaur professor. "Morn- uh..." Wait. He paused, and thought about it. The lesson started at noon, and it was still a few minutes before, so... yes, technically, he wasn't wrong. "Morning." Uh... flowers? Eat the flowers? Kaiser was no picky eater, but that sounded like a strange request. He cast a curious look at the others who were already present and following said instructions, then took a single flower out of the bowl for himself. Feeling just a little unsure, he found himself a space to wait for the lesson to begin, and started working on... becoming acquainted with the flower. |
Avalon was still getting used to the fact that wands weren't allowed in divination lessons. She felt odd without it. It was a safety net for her, and she had gotten so used to carrying it around that the emptiness in her palm was still alarming. She trudged into the forest, looking curiously at the centaur and the strange bowl on the stump beside him. "Hello, Professor," she said, greeting her teacher with a pleasant smile. She listened to his instructions, and couldn't help but raise an eyebrow in confusion. They were supposed to eat flowers? That was certainly an interesting task. She waited for a few students to eat their own before she reached into the bowl and plucked out a light blue flower. Avalon took a deep breath, trying to "experience" the flower with all of her senses. But she couldn't seem to focus. This seemed a bit silly. And she didn't want to eat it! She couldn't imagine that it would taste very good. Hesitantly, she raised the flower to her nose and sniffed. It smelled like....a flower. Alright, maybe she should get on with tasting it. She placed the petals on her tongue and tried to relax as the flavor melted into her mouth. Avalon was pleasantly surprised to taste sweetness, coupled with a bit of citrus. It was quite delicious! |
Tina made her way to the edge of the forest, curious what her favorite subject would have in store today. She spotted their centaur teacher standing beside a stump and gave him a respectful nod in greeting. “Good-” she began. At first she planned to say “good morning”, but that didn't sound right. The morning was pretty much over, but it wasn't technically afternoon either. “Good day,” she said. Yeah, couldn't go wrong with that! She smiled a little to herself as her dark eyes were drawn to the brightly colored flowers in the bowl. Was there some method of predicting the future that used flowers? That would be interesting! No… apparently they were supposed to eat them instead. Tina blinked at the strange instructions, but she did as she was told. She trusted there must be a reason behind it, though she had to admit, she was curious what that reason was! She chose the two brightest flowers to catch her eye and examined them closely. The larger one was a sunny yellow color and had a smooth, almost waxy feel to the touch. The other flower was white with pink around the outer edges, smaller than the first, and the petals had more rounded edges. The smaller flower also had a lighter. almost powdery feel. She sniffed each flower in turn. They both had a floral scent, but the white flower's smell was stronger. Now came the weird part… actually eating the flowers. Tina started with the yellow flower. She popped it into her mouth, savoring the taste. It was a light, fruity flavor that reminded her of peaches. The flower slowly dissolved on her tongue. Only when it was completely gone did she consume the other flower, and she was taken aback by the sharp contrast in flavor. This one had a stronger, more biting taste that was vaguely reminiscent of cinnamon. When she was finished eating, she looked up to await further instructions. |
we have officially begun our Divination journey together here Selecting a nasturtium for himself, Thereos took a moment to admire its brightly colored and welcoming visual. Very reminiscent of the way Mars had looked not two days ago. The silky quality of the petals reminded him of the gentle caress of a spring breeze which, if the stars and embers from last nights meal were speaking the truth, he would not be feeling against his flank until much later this school term. SPOILER!!: students, Jupiter ascends in your favor Lifting his head skyward a moment before trotting out from under the shade of the trees and into the warm autumn sunlight, Thereos gave his shadow a pensive inspection before pivoting around and galloping back towards his stump. "Mr. Kaiser. If you have not done so already I suggest you allow your mouth and other sense to become acquainted with that flower," he encouraged as his hooves struck the ground beside the boy. "Let us begin," his voice boomed as he clapped his strong hands together thrice to draw any lingering attentions back to himself. "Today's lesson will be held in the depths of the Forbidden Forest. For your own safety, I must implore you all to maintain a lack of hubbub and mold your voices into a respectful quiet and calm tone at all times. The Forest knows you are coming and has bestowed upon you its permission, do not disrespect nor disappoint." It was a warning he would be giving only once. "Now, younglings, I need you all to follow me. Flank my sides and remain within touching distance of my hide or the hand of someone who is as we proceed down the destined path into the Forest." Thereos allowed them a moment to gather closer before unceremoniously beginning his casual stroll towards the edge of the woods and hesitated not as his hooves crossed the threshold and waited until the group was under the canopy of leaves and branches before continuing his instruction in manner that made it feel as though he were affectionately serenading the class. "Now that some essence of the natural world rests in your bellies, its taste lingering on your human tongues, look to the trees as we proceed on our journey together and listen to the leaves as they whisper their truths. Tell me, what do they tell you of our purpose here today?" OOC: Class has officially begun! Thank you for joining us. |
He wasn't at all surprised that they were going in to the forbidden forest for the lesson. Was he a fan of it? No. Definitely not. Why couldn't they have a lesson which did not involve going in to a forbidden place. But like always, Dorian didn't dare to defy a Professor and he followed without any verbal complaint. The warnings were listened to and noted but he knew that they were more directed to some others than to him. He had always been silent The way the centaur spoke had confused him the first few classes but after a while he thought he got the hang of the basics. The trees and leaves were whispering to turn back and never return but that might have been his own wishful thinking. How deep in to the forest were they going to go anyway? He had no idea what they were going to learn today but as long as they weren't going to hug and whisper back to the trees he was okay. |
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She had finished seeing, smelling and touching her flower and had just popped it into her mouth when the centaur began the lesson. She followed at a safe distance, trying to mindfully chew her flower while also taking note of her surroundings. When instructed, she looked at the trees around her and listened to the leaves. ... They didn't tell her ANYTHING. She bet the trees didn't even CARE why they were here today. But she could pretend that she heard something from the leaves and just... take a guess. After swallowing her second flower, Jade raised her hand. "Will we be studying Xylomancy today?" She said, in a quieter-than-usual voice. Gotta respect the Forest. |
It had been a few weeks since classes had started, but did that mean that Archer was used to the confusing way in which Thereos spoke? Absolutely not. She did learn after a few lessons to keep her humor and amusement to herself, as the centaur didn't appreciate it at all. Shame. Basically, she was up a creek without a whole freaking canoe. Well, that wasn't completely correct. She did understand the warning about the forest. But she decided to take up the back of the forest-going crowd for 'prefect reasons'. Or that's what she'd say if asked, anyway. It definitely wasn't because the forest creeped her out a little. |
Just for the record, as someone who couldn't always follow the language of a regular class, Kaiser struggled tenfold in Divination. He supposed that whatever Thereos was saying was really important and probably profound, but it was rare that he could listen to an entire sentence without becoming utterly lost. Apparently, he wasn't alone in these struggles, according to some of his friends, but he couldn't help but feel that he might have had fewer problems if English was his first language. Hearing his name, Kaiser looked up from the flower he was still intently looking at, and watched the centaur as he passed. It took him... a moment, but eventually he figured he was being instructed to hurry up and eat the flower already. He nodded, and slipped it into his mouth. Tasting and savouring and trying to appreciate but mostly just noticing that it didn't exactly taste wonderful... but then, what had he been expecting? Sooooo... the forest, then. Kaiser kept his face expressionless and didn't betray any sort of reaction to this news, but privately he wondered exactly how wise this was. Hogwarts students were not exactly known for their tendency to keep out of danger at the best of times. Still, he made no argument, and followed Thereos and the rest of the group up to and inside the forest. Oh... wait. A question. "Uhhh..." Kaiser said as they walked, still with the flower in his mouth. He swallowed it, grimaced slightly, and cast around for something to say. "... Divination...?" Not even a remotely sarcastic answer; that was their purpose here today, right? |
Uhh… All Tina could do was blink dumbly at Thereos's warning. That didn't sound like her at all! She always showed restraint in her lessons. She put careful thought into her answers before she spoke, always raised her hand, and didn't repeat other people's answers. And since when was she ever sociable? For a brief moment, she wondered if he might have her confused with another student, but she reminded herself that he was the the teacher for a reason. There must be some truth to his words, even if she didn't see it yet. She listened closely to the instructions given and followed the professor and other students into the forest, keeping within touching distance as she was told, though she had no intention of actually touching anybody. Just the idea made her cringe! But hopefully there would be no need for that… She put the thought out of her mind as she considered the question asked, trying to get the gist from the series of confusing words. Okay, so they were supposed to find the purpose of the lesson by listening to the leaves? That was… unexpected. Tina stood still and silent. listening intently to the leaves rustling, but all she heard was… leaves. No special meaning, no nothing! Maybe something Thereos said would give her a clue instead. He'd specifically mentioned leaves… leaves, leaves, that was it! Tina suddenly remembered reading something about phyllomancy, specifically a branch of divination using sounds made from dry leaves. That sounded exactly like what they'd just been asked to do! She wanted to raise her hand but stopped herself just in time, remembering the earlier advice to show restraint. Did that mean she shouldn't show off her knowledge? She wasn't sure, but she wasn't taking any chances! It was taking all her willpower not to give an answer, especially one she was so confident about, but she kept quiet so as to let others have a chance to guess. |
we've been here the whole time :3 Maeve ordinarily would have not bothered with Divination Lessons because she found the subject to be awfully dull and cheesy. But upon hearing that the lessons would be taught by a CENTAUR this term, which meant they would be held on the grounds as opposed to the stuffy divination tower, the sixth year couldn't resist. Plus they got to EAT flowers; like how bad could it be when he started a lesson with edible flowers? A lesson that was going to be held in the forbidden forest. EXCITING Eagerly walking alongside, she almost bumped into the person she was walking behind at the sudden stopping under a leaf canopy. Fortunately she caught herself, stabling her balance against a nearby tree. She glanced around at the trees as the centaur spoke and frowned. Yea, this was why she didn't study Divination normally. "It's gonna rain?" Wasn't Divination used to predict the future and well, they were in a forest. |
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She trudged along as Thereos led the class further into the forest, trying to make sense of his odd language. Avalon thought that he always spoke as if he was reading a poem. It was quite fascinating, to be honest, but frustrating nonetheless - she frequently had trouble understanding him. She figured that he was asking what nature might have to do with their lesson today, and the responses from a few of her classmates confirmed her suspicion. Was there a branch of divination that dealt with flowers? Trees? Bushes? She didn't really know, other than recalling her dad talking about wizards burning herbs to tell the future. She decided to keep quiet, as she wasn't quite sure of the answer. |
SPOILER!!: students The very path beneath the centaur's hooves began to widen as the group approached an expansive crooked grove deep within the Forbidden Forest. "This is a sacred place to centaurs," he explain in a grave tone, one that they should all be familiar with by now when it came to showing respect and honoring their surroundings. Surprisingly pleasant and bright despite how far they had walked, there was almost a calming quality to their surroundings and even Thereos' broad shoulders began to relax. "These trees here will be our guides today. In a heart of a tree there is no apprehension, no wish to fall, no wish to sleep and awaken. Tree groves such as these are the first temples. Between every two is a doorway hinged to our life and the natural order of the universe. Today you will be learning how to harness these energies." Trotting forward a few more paces, Thereos stopped suddenly when his hooves nearly stepped on a small sapling growing forth from the ground. ".....how curious. Mercury is retrograde..." he observed as he circled it twice before coming to a stop, facing the students, and dug a symbol in the ground beside the sapling. "The sapling is one with the natural order of the universe. It to wants what life wills, to become a tree. Tell me, saplings of the Hogwarts castle, what natural order and rituals have brought you here on this path to Hogwarts? The path towards the larger journey of becoming a witch or wizard? Those greenest in their journey have the freshest of memories. What will have you with this core essence of your being?" OOC: Thank you for sticking with us and welcome to those joining us a little late! This is the final question before we get into the activity sections of the lesson. |
Been here the entire time! <3 Divination was not one of her best classes but here she was arriving at the grove of trees well into the Forbidden Forest with the rest of class. Having consumed a rather lovely lilac colored flower was by far not the best part of this lesson. Her deep love of flowers and plants had made it seem strange to consume one at first and she had taken a few long moments studying her flower, almost as if holding a silent conversation with it. Once she had laid it upon her tongue and chewed and swallowed there was a rather pleasant taste to it that reminded her of being home. The first question that had been asked went on unanswered by the fifth year simply because she had been a little to focused on watching where it was she was going and what was near her. Stopping in the grove was nice. Rylee looked around taking in all that she could from her surroundings. As Thereos spoke everything was mentally stored away in her head. Or well... at least what she understood, anyhow. Pondering over his question for several moments she lifted her hand until she was called upon. "When I was really little it was mostly little things that showed my family I was indeed magical, making a stuffed creature float to me or turning on music in my home so I could. I went onto wizarding primary school and received my Hogwarts letter on my eleventh birthday." Rylee paused to take a breath before continuing, "I want to become a Herbologist. I have a very deep love of flowers, plants, trees and nature in general." |
At that response, Kaiser sent a sideways glance at the centaur, eyes narrowed slightly, but continued silently picking his way along the path, following along with the rest of the group. When they reached what seemed to be their destination, Kaiser had a good look around at the grove, but most of his concentration was devoted to deciphering Thereos' words. His face was screwed up slightly in concentration as he listened, but, from what he could gather, it didn't seem like this was a question he wanted to answer. He supposed the details of his path or journey might have been interesting to share or even just to allude to, but Kaiser was also a very guarded and private person. The prospect of sharing anything from his past, or even his hopes for his future, just seemed far too personal. With that in mind, he kept his mouth shut and his answer firmly to himself. |
Avalon gazed up at the trees, engrossed by the beauty of the forest. She was grateful that the weather was nice today. It would have been dreadful to have class in the cold or rain. Thereos's voice was calming as he explained the purpose of trees in their lesson today. They were going to harness the energies of plants? That certainly sounded....interesting. And what was that strange symbol Thereos drew in the ground? Divination always was a confusing class, but now the centaur was adding in eating flowers and drawing bizarre symbols? Or maybe it was a rune? Nevertheless, Avalon listened and tried to piece together his next question. She figured that he was encouraging the younger students to speak up, by comparing them to being the "greenest" (youngest) of the saplings. She raised her hand. "When I was little, I used to want to be an auror. I thought it was such a noble job. But then I discovered how much I love learning and teaching. Even as a kid, I would teach my little cousins all about the things I learned at primary school. I want to become a professor. I'm not sure what subject yet, but teaching at Hogwarts is my dream. And getting my education here is certainly the first step," she said with a smile. |
Hanna nodded once at Thereos' request not to address him with Professor. Noted. But it was going to be way more difficult to stop the automatic Professor that came out before a name. Hanna did not want to go into the Forbidden Forest. There were a lot of animals in there, some that were big, and some TOO big. Even the ones smaller than she were still very frightening. But, seeing as they were accompanied by Thereos she hoped it would be safe enough. Even with the permission. With dread she approached the hide of Thereos and followed him. His words left no meaning in her mind. What was he even asking? Hanna remained silent as a few others spoke, heading deeper into the Forest. The area they approached was beautiful, but the content in Thereos' words... not so much. Hanna had little idea of what he was saying. What natural order and rituals have brought you here on this path to Hogwarts? Well... her mother and father were a witch and wizard. Hanna was a Witch. They went to Hogwarts, and Hanna was accepted. But that probably wasn't the answer he wanted, considering there were few other ways into this castle as a student if you weren't a witch or wizard. He didn't need a crystal ball to know that. |
Austin was glad they were outside. He liked being outside. As for the forest. Well...it was a little crerpy but he had a funny idea. Thereos had been confusing when he talked all night so Austin didn't have an answer for those questions as for this one... "I...I have a hard time..." Austin sighed as he tried to say the words outloud. He took a breath and let it out again. "I just...have a hard time talking. In most situations. My, my dad said I should be homeschooled. I, I told him I didn't want to. I wanted to go to magic school. Like everyone else." Wow that was a lot to say. Austin was glad he was able to get it all out. |
Wait. Oh so it wasn't going to rain? Maeve was bored and trying really hard to not show it, as the centaur instructed her about broadening her understanding and sight. So okay that wasn't what he'd been asking and if Chase or Anna was there, she'd probably a rambling motion with her hand, but instead she simply nodded silently at the centaur. Sacred place for centaurs. Sooo did today's class involve bowtruckles too? But apparently that was a tangent and Thereos didn't seem like the type to sway from the subject matter. Watching him curiously as he circled and showed the sapling he then posed to them another question. Natural order of the universe. Was he .... talking about the circle of life? Or ...?? "Showing signs of magic by doing something out of the ordinary... and eventually getting a letter offering us a place at Hogwarts? To hone our magic and be useful members of society?" Or was she completely off-topic again? |
At first Tina thought she knew what branch of divination they would be studying, but now she wasn't so sure. The more she listened to Thereos, the more confused she became! Something about the heart of a tree and a doorway to the natural order of the universe… So were they learning phyllomancy today or not? With a vague explanation like that, it sounded like it could go either way. At least the next question wasn't difficult to understand… just difficult to answer. Once again, Tina remained silent. She didn't like sharing details about her past. How did she know someone here wouldn't one day use her history against her? Besides, it wasn't exactly a happy story. Her journey to Hogwarts was different than most. It started off fairly normal… She displayed signs of magical talent at an early age, and her dad was so proud of her! She knew then that she wanted to study magic so he'd stay proud of her, and she eventually got her acceptance letter from Beauxbatons. But her journey from Beauxbatons to Hogwarts was anything but normal! Suffice it to say, there was a lot of betrayal and lies involved. The other part of the question was easier to answer, but Tina's answer wasn't like anything the others had said so far. The thing she wanted to accomplish in life wasn't so much a specific career goal; it was more an ideal. She always knew she wanted to use her talents to help others, but her experience at Beauxbatons made her want something else too. What she wanted most out of life was vindication, both for herself and others who had been badly wronged. |
The pregnant silence that followed was like that of an elephant and for a moment Thereos became concerned that he had made a mistake in bringing students to this hallowed tapestry. Though as soon as hands, timid as some may have been, began raising the centaur felt validated in his reading of the smoke from the sage. SPOILER!!: students His thick tail swishing and fanning his backside, Thereos permitted his eyes to scan his saplings once more before speaking. "Many of you spoke of the first manifestations of magic, levitating stuffed creatures..." He could not help but trail off here. How barbaric a practice, taking creatures and stuffing them to then be paraded around as a human play thing. Perhaps the changing perception of wizards was misguided by centaurkind? "...the receiving of your Hogwarts letter, the first formal documentation of your fate and path...but it was Miss Walsh whom touched on something vital, the honing of your magic. The honing of your core essence of your being." All would become clear soon. Thereos, for all his whimsy, did have a methodology. "This is something that your kind and mine have in common and both utilize forests such as these. Alder, blackthorn, cypress, elder, fir, hornbeam, oak, spruce, and vine...all are examples of the gifts the natural world bestow upon you and are wielded in your very hands. Wands..." The word came out with much disdain on his pleasant tongue. "...have certain vibrations unique to each witch and wizard. Many moons ago, ten turns around the sun thus, I taught a lesson here at Hogwarts about a rite of passage for centaurkind, the receiving of our first bows. Wand is to wizard as bow is to centaur. Each of you, right now, has your own portal with nature opened. Unlike you, however, centaurs are able to commune with the raw energies and vibrations of all woods...though strongest energies happen to coincide with those also harnessed for wands... whereas you must have them activated or invoked as is seen with wands and runes." He paused here, allowing these thoughts to sink into the impressionable minds of his pupils. "However, with today's mindfulness exercises you performed in the floral consumption and tree observation while walking here, there is an increased chance that today you will be bestowed the ability to commune better despite your human limitations." This was far too much speaking for the centaur's liking, but onward he pressed. "Today you will be performing dendromancy, a method of divining using the leaves and branches of trees. While human fallacy has traditional limited the practice to mistletoe and oak, the minds and energy flows among us today have been rejuvenated and the inner portals opened. Your first task is to match yourself with a tree found in this temple. Approach it, hug its trunk, and breathe deeply for three breaths to sync your essence with its own. Listen to its leaves for whispers of its acceptance of you, feel the vibrations beat beneath its bark. Sit beneath your tree of choice and with your finger to the earth, draw this symbol in the ground before you," he instructed while using his right hoof to draw a symbol large enough for all to see with ease composed of three lines in the ground in front of him. "... and wait with your palms pressed over it like so...your dominate hand pressed to the earth." Bending his strong legs, Thereos folded his hind once under his rump soon followed by his front so that he knelt on the ground. Eyes on his two-legged students, he then placed his right hand to the ground first followed by the left atop it. "...like so. You have ten minutes. You may begin opening your minds and allowing the essence of the forest in. Be mindful and above all else respectful. Do not fight the natural elements while making your selection." OOC: we have arrived at the mini activity! To reiterate, your character is to walk around the grove of trees and find one 'suitable' to their liking. Then they need to draw the same symbol in the ground and sit beneath their tree of choice. |
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