Morgan wouldn't admit that he was excited for Herbology class because it was still class and who got excited for school? But he would admit that Herbology was one of his favorite classes and he wasn't dreading coming today. In fact, it looked like he was the first one down to the greenhouses. Huh. When did that ever happen?

"Sup, Professor?" Morgan greeted her cheerfully and went to find his usual seat. Do not touch...? Was she serious? Just the fact that he was told not to made him want to even more. He staaaared at the sign, then peeked up at the plant.

"Good morning, Professor," Violet called out as she hurried into Herbology class, thinking she was late. But no, it looked like class hadn't even started yet. Storing her things under the table, she looked curiously at the potted plant that rested there. Reading the note next to it, she drew back the finger that had just been reaching towards the plant--oh, she hated signs that said "Don't do something," because that just made her want to do it that much more.

V enjoyed the professor, not the subject. But did she really enjoy school at all? So it was probably one of the lessons she least hated, but she WAS curious as to what Professor June was doing as she approached the greenhouse. So she didn't enter the greenhouse yet, but instead stopped right next to her.

"What are those?" she asked, gesturing to the roses. "Oh, they're so PRETTY, professor!" she squeaked with delight.

“Good afternoon, Professor,’’ Claudine greeted the busy woman. Um… were they going to annoy her with all the interruptions as she worked on those pretty roses? The girl knew that she would have been. Then again. Flamsteed wasn’t like that. “Those roses get prettier everyday, by the way.” And with that, Claudine slipped off to find herself a workstation.

Violet got a smile as she made her way to a station next to Morgan. They were distantly related, did he remember? In any case, she’d always liked him so… yeah. She was going to take a workstation right here. “Hi, Morgan.”

And hello there, potted plant.

Phoebe paused on her way into the greenhouse to admire the Professor's pretty roses. They were coming along so nicely, and she sort of wanted to stick her face into one of the bushes and take in the scent. She wasn't deterred by the thorns, but she was definitely not interested in getting in trouble with the professor for manhandling her flowers.

"Good day, Professor. The roses are beautiful." She dropped into a seat near Morgan and winked at him. "I know what you're thinking, and stifle those Gryffindor instincts."

Misa strolled into the classroom. Visits to the Greenhouses reminded her of the gardens back home. Herbology wasn't her favorite class, but she did always look forward to it.

"Hello Professor." she greeted as she passed. She then took a seat, leaning curiously toward the potted plant. Hello there either new friend or potential enemy.

Lisa spotted the colour changing roses ans IMMEDIATELY thought of the time when Remy and her had tried to cut some. Oops. Diffindo had been the wrong choice of spell but luckily Noah’s super hyper sister (not Lisa- Scarlet) came to the rescue! And even if she’d been a bite rude about it, Lisa was VERY glad that they hadn’t cut all the flowers and destroyed them. Would have been a pity…

Anyway- the roses were beautiful. However, she wasn’t sure if that was what the lesson was going to be about because each of the workstations were set up without roses. It was a plotted plant in the middle of the table. She joined V’s table and gave her friend a smile. “Hey!” she greeted, hoping that what had happened in a previous class had been put to rest between the two of them. She really liked V after all- she just didn’t like the behaviour. That’s how her mother had coached her on how to phrase feedback like that… Lisa, of course, had been avoiding said conversation not because she didn’t like conflict but more because she didnt want to think of the next step after it.

“Hi Professor!” she greeted before peering over the table to inspect the plant. “Is it… fragile or poisonous?”

He hated to admit it, but Max was bad at Herbology. That obviously made him dislike the class, though he did not let it show. After all, he believed in the 'fake it till you make it' mindset. If he pretended to like and excel in Herbology (even if he had to cheat), he would truly improve someday, right? And yeah no, he did not have to be told to not touch a mysterious plant. He couldn't fake interest in that and risk losing a limb.

"Hello, Professor," he said to Professor Flamsteed before heading to his work station.

Greenhouse Threeeeeeeeeeeeeee...

Which one was that again? With the number of times he had been down here for class or otherwise, one would think that Atlas would have remembered what plants were in which but...alas.

"Afternoon!" He beamed at Auntie June as he entered only for his face fell towards one of despair as he saw the instructions NOT to touch the plant. Professors needed to stop putting big shiny red buttons in front of their students, did they know? At least he wasn't wearing a dinosaur outfit this time, although he was accompanied by his fellow t-rex to class.

Lamenting as he found a seat, the station just adjacent to the not-a-cry baby Slytherin and Lisa who both received small smiles, Atlas folded his arms on the table and set his chin on the back of his hands to just STARE at the plant. The staring did not last for too long though as he got his quill out and wiggled the feather end towards the plant. NOT touching it but rather wafting some air towards it..and maybe seeing if he could get it's attention? What did the plant DO?

Another day, another class that Ash had almost skipped. She had started skipping classes when she wasn't in the mood for dealing with people. Herbology was one of the first to go. But she was here today. Congratulations.

She took a seat by herself. "Good morning." She was here and she had spoken. Nobody could expect much more than that.

Remy had skipped most of the way to the greenhouses, in good spirits this afternoon, especially after doing a little bit of studying earlier on in the morning. She was ready! Remy was excited to see the colour changing roses that Professor Flamsteed was tending to, although it brought back memories of when Scarlett Mordaunt showed her up in front of Lisa. Hopefully they weren’t learning the flip’n’swip - whatever charm today.

Upon entering greenhouse three, Remy spotted a few familiar faces which put a smile on her face. She smiled at Lisa, V, Atlas, and her newest friend, Ash. She paused and thought about who to sit beside, but decided that since Ash was sitting alone, she’d pick her. Remy smiled and said, “hey,” before shooting some longing looks at her other friends. Why did Ash choose to sit alone?

“Good afternoon, Professor Flamsteed.” The Gryffindor greeted politely, setting her stuff in front of her.

The first thing Heath noticed upon walking into Greenhouse Three was the color-changing roses, and he smiled to himself. He liked those flowers! They reminded him of a plant his brother used to have. Was that what they were doing today? He hoped so; that sounded like a really fun lesson! “Good afternoon, Professor Flamsteed,” he greeted, acknowledging the woman with a polite nod. “I like your roses.”

Dark eyes scanning the area, he spotted Claudine and beelined for a workstation near her. “Hi,” he said with a small smile. Oh, and hi to the two Gryffindors (Morgan & Phoebe) seated sort of nearish too! “Hey,” he added, nodding to each person in turn. As he arranged his supplies in front of him, he noticed the plant in the middle of the room. He eyed it with curiosity but made no move to touch it. He wasn’t stupid enough to touch something despite explicit instructions not to do so. That sign must be there for a reason!

Plants! Dahlia had a slight spring in her step as she made her way into greenhouse three. Herbology always put a smile on her face. It was one of the classes that came easy to her, well her knowledge of plants came easily. The spell work.. not so much lately but she was doing her best.

"Good afternoon, Professor! The roses are looking beautiful today, are we going to be working with them?" Color changing roses were so pretty! Not to mesmerizing. She could sit and stare at them all day long. The other plant that sat nearby caught her eye as well but it didn't keep her attention for very long. Not yet anyhow.

Turns to find herself an empty seat and sits down, taking out her things for the lesson.

Once everyone had settled in, June shut the door and moved behind her own station. "First and foremost, thank you for showing restrain - and not touching the plant ... just yet" The brunette chuckled - looking pointedly at the few gryffindors around, especially her own nephews. Was Aries trying to sniff the pot?

...

Ignoring the disaster-in-making for now, June began, "I promise - I won't stop you all for long. But before we get into that, answer me this, can you tell me about plants that are always difficult to handle - and what are the ways we can handle them?"


OOC: Thank you for being here, guys. First question up, will hopefully move the class along in 14-16 hours.

"Oops." But like, not really. Her tone of voice didn't suggest that she really cared at all what time of day it was. Actually, it suggested that she didn't care at all and wasn't planning on caring anytime soon. Ash looked away, then noticed Remy standing by her. What for? Why wouldn't she go stand with her other, happier friends? Um. Okay. She softly said "Hey..." She "smiled" too, almost as an afterthought.

Lesson stuff. Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah...

"Angel's Trumpets and Oleanders are completely poisonous. They will mess you up if you ingest it. Oh, and also you will die. So, uh, wear gloves I guess, and don't rub your eyes or eat anything. Or just don't go near it." Or... take your chances and eat a bunch. Haha.

Right.

So Claudine was all set for the lesson. Her gaze kept travelling to those roses, however. Had the lesson not been about to start, she’d have started a sketch of them. Still, it could be done from memory… and so, Claudine decided to make this her next art project. She looked around as Heath joined her. “Hi, you,’’ she told him, smiling brightly.

When Flamsteed got started, Claudine eyed the potted plant before her. She was curious about it but not that curious to want to go against the woman’s words and touch it. Anyway. With regard to the questions, the girl raised a hand. “The Venomous Tentacula’s vines will actually come alive to grab its targets. I think stunning the Tentaculas’ help when dealing with them.”

The professor was being terribly modest about her roses, although Phoebe wasn't horribly fussed about it. There were things that Phoebe found almost second nature when they went well and only surprising when they flopped, and perhaps beautiful roses fell in that category for Professor Flamsteed.

Or not, but regardless, if the professor wanted to move, they would move along.

Dangerous plants were much more interesting, anyway. "There are plants that are absolutely deadly to touch with your bare hands or exposed skin. You could probably handle them just fine with gloves or the right charms or... maybe just not touching them is best."

Heath nodded in reply to Professor Flamsteed. As instructed, he quickly arranged his note-taking supplies on the workstation in front of him. He saw Claudine's bright smile out of the corner of his eye, and he had just enough time to return it with a small smile of his own before the lesson began. He focused on the professor, though his eyes momentarily darted to the plant at the mention of it. It seemed fairly obvious that the plant was dangerous, if the do not touch note and the first question were anything to go on, but how was it dangerous?

He supposed he'd find out soon enough. For now, he tried to come up with an answer to the question. Others had already touched on plants that were harmful if touched or ingested, so what else could he say? He thought of the remaining three senses. Was there a plant that was dangerous because of its looks? Or smell? Or sound? Suddenly a thought occurred to him, and his hand went up. "Would the mandrake count as difficult to handle?" he said. "It's certainly dangerous, as the cry of an adult is fatal. One way to protect yourself when handling mandrakes is to wear earmuffs." Then he thought of something else and added, "Would spells like Silencio and Muffliato also be useful with mandrakes?"

Annndddd Dia was going to go a totally different direction with her answer. "Usually plants develop their more.....difficult tendencies as a defense mechanism. Like roses have thorns to keep people from picking them, not that they help any. And Venus flytraps eat bugs before the bugs can eat them." Right? Right.

Of course, the same things could be said about people too.....

Max nodded to the professor in response to her friendly question. Yes, good day so far, super chill … being helpless in this class would ruin his day though. He groaned inwardly when the lesson began and the first discussion question was given. “Plants that are always difficult to handle” - so, like, all plants? If this potted plant on his work station was an especially challenging one to take care of, he would surely fail at the task prepared.

Still, he could offer an answer to the question, since his theoretical knowledge of Herbology wasn’t too bad. “The Devil’s Snare is difficult to handle, because it tries to strangle anything that touches it. You’ve got to relax in order to be in its vicinity … and give it some heat and light,” or a damp and dark environment, if you wanted to make it grow well. The definition of “handling” a plant would vary depending on who you spoke to - a Herbologist, or Max Young.

Lia smiled warmly. Arriving with a little time to spare and get settled before a lesson was just perfect for her. She liked having time to get her things out for the class but not enough time to get bored. It looked like she timed things just perfect today.

Oooh, they were talking about difficult to work with plants?! This was going to be interesting. Straightening up more in her seat, Lia's eyes wandered towards the other plant for a moment as she gave thought on the question before raising her hand. "There's the Dendrocnide moroides also known as the Gympie Gympie. Just brushing against it's leaves can cause severe pain and kill you rather quickly. It has hundreds of tiny venomous needles that it stings with and the pain can last months and return years later even after seeking medical help.." she paused for a moment. "It causes eye and nose irritation too so gloves and bubblehead charm might be useful, as well protective clothing." Or just staying very far away from the plant all together.

Serena was mostly distracted by the color changing roses when the lesson began. Her grandmum has a huuuuge garden and in a spot she had color changes roses, too. Serena was allowed to touch them, but they were always fun to guess.

Switching her attention to the pot, the redhead tilted her head to the side. Please, let it be something fun. All of her textbook studies had become a little boring lately. She's improved a lot and Serena was ready for more challenges.

She enjoyed herbology discussions, though. A lot of it tied into potions, and the more information she absorbed, the more she learned. For this question, Serena had a lot of answers, but settled for one. She raised her hand. "Poisonous plants are some of them. Take aconite. It's leaves are extremely toxic, so typically it should be handled by gloved hands or levitation charms."

The first time Serena had stumbled upon aconite flowers was in the woods near her home, on a walk with her dad. They had been searching for potion ingredients when she saw pretty sprigs of purple. She knew by then not to touch plants without gloves (dad 101 rules for collecting potion ingredients), so she simply admired. Then her dad explained what they were and their use for the wolfsbane potion. They had gathered a bunch that day.

Morgan had said hello to both Claudine and Heath as they sat near him, then turned to Phoebe on the other side of him. "But... the sign.." he whispered to her. She had to know how tempting it was. He probably wouldn't have thought about it if there hadn't been that sign.... well, no that probably wasn't true. He probably still would have wanted to inspect it being on their table.

But class was starting now and Morgan looked up as he thought about an answer. He actually did know quite a bit about plants, but as he waited to be called on while others answered, he had to narrow down his thoughts as others said things he was also thinking of.

"There are lots of flesh-eating plants," he said, figuring those would be labelled as 'difficult to handle,' especially as a few mentioned a couple "Like the snargaluff which has thorns and could eat you. Those are probably the most difficult to handle." Or flesh-eaters in general, he meant, since most people didn't want to become a plant's meal. "But there are also plants like poison oak and poison ivy that can give people a rash." Still difficult to handle, but more of a nuisance than a danger.

Lisa opted to listen to her classmates answers, nodding along occasionally as they spoke. Max got a smile. Not because of what he was talking about cause Devil’s Snare was scary and did not deserve a smile but he got a smile cause he was NICE.

She did visibly shiver at the plant that Lia had mentioned. Walking past it and you could….. die? She gulped. Yeah, no thanks… she’d stay inside and away from that kind of plant. She’d have to ask Lia where one could find those plants so she could permanently avoid them.

“An example of a plant that is dangerous to handle would be Venomous Tentacula. It can grab things and people….”