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The weather is warming up, though still often chilly or windy, as it is today. And Herbology class is taking place out on the grounds, near the hedgerows that grow here and there around the school, making off areas and forming little boundaries. Here and there a few early flowers and herbs are starting to blossom.
When you get to the right place, you will know it, because Professor Devries has tied up colored streamers (in the Hogwarts House colors) to some of the branches to guide students to class (besides, they look kind of nice!). He's also set up an easel with a large board on it which is covered at present by a dark blue cloth. Devries is there leaning against a tree and wearing a large blue and green sweater knitted in a traditional-looking pattern, with a navy, knitted fisherman's cap on his balding head.
Just gather around the easel and talk amongst yourselves until everyone gets here. Class will begin shortly. CLASS HAS BEGUN! [OOC: If you haven't posted yet, just rp your character like they've been there all along (unless you really want to find out how annoyed the easy-going Tapio is about tardiness)]
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astronomizzle ♧ gryffinDORK | & the rest is drag ♣ #badluckDerf
It was happening again. Apparently one did not even need a crowded room for the sentiment to take hold, just the great outdoors.
He hadn't the time to return any finger wiggling back to Lisa, even if he had been inclined to do so, since Mercer had presented him with a bag of hidden treasures. Most...did not seem like particularly interesting pieces to him, but Atlas had his own bag like this full of bits and bobs from rubbish bins and scrap piles...so he understood niche interests. And, well, that one rock was a particularly interesting shape. He had just been about to voice as much when the train of thought was derailed and an uncomfortable wave seized and twisted his chest, rendering him silent. He wished Mercer had not pulled off his metaphorical Cloak of Invisibility, especially with this particular series of questions. The drumming sound in his ears was deafening and it took several shallow and strained breaths for him to put together that he was hearing the sound of his heart echoing through his ear canals.
"...c-class is starting..." he mumbled defeatedly under his breath, face hot and ears a matching rouge hue, not answering any of the Ravenclaw's questions and turning his gaze towards the ground instead so he could watch the leather slightly move as he wiggled and pressed his toes into his shoes. Silent he remained as Professor Devries began discussion and asked the this and that, all the while the Gryffindor wishing the ground could maybe just swallow him up.
Sorry, Auntie June, but this would not be a productive lesson like he had started the day out promising himself. He was not looking forward to facing Sadie's wrath later either.
Which was kind of a pity since he DID actually know something and could have actually flexed a bit of plant knowledge as well. He HAD, after all, been putting a fair bit of research into dandelions because of his project for the dance. Namely he knew about the fluffy bits and how the little bits that made up the fluffy bits were called pappus and that was connected to the seed and that made it possible for the seeds to travel great distances on the wind. But, well, his shoes were pretty interesting too, he supposed.
Speaking of feeling like a plant in the wrong place.
Relieved for a bit of reading material, even though all the text was a little hard to make out from where he stood, the fifth year focused on trying to do just that and absorb whatever information he could in the moment. He was, after all, trying NOT to fail his Herbology OWL...even if that felt inevitable.
At least this particular charm was one he had some confidence in...he knew he could cut plants in half, even if it was not done so with the most delicate of touches.
"I'll...just be here in on this patch of grass," he informed both Mercer and Kinsay before side stepping away and plopping himself on the ground to practicing the Severing Charm on a couple of the taller blades of grass. He managed just fine...but ever the distracted one...he also managed to sever the shoelaces on his left shoe clear down the middle so the little bits sort of fanned out on either side in defeat.
...at least it hadn't also been his foot?
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When you're stuck in a moment and your spark has been stolen .................................................. ........... this is our time to own it, so own it..................................... baby we were born withfire and gold in our eyes
~ Mrs. Steve Harrington ~ It be like that sometimes.
Jude was aghast. There was no way he’d be eating Stinging Nettles in any of his food, even if it was edible once cooked. He refrained from making a disgusted expression then continued taking notes. There was definitely so much to learn and he was eager to soak it all up. Rather than write every single word Devries had on the board, he made jottings. That was simpler and quicker.
The Hufflepuff immediately decided that he wanted to harvest the Stinging Nettles. There was nothing like a little challenge to keep things interesting. Not that it would be much of a challenge since he was going to be wearing gloves, but still.
Three spells were ones that Jude was already familiar with and had had some sort of practice with already. He foresaw this being a successful lesson for himself. “Diff-INN-doh!” The movement Devries made earlier was replicated to what Jude thought was perfection. "TURR-gee-oh!” A simple point - that was easy peasy. For Flipnsnipwitit, the fifth year recalled that the wand movement was a swish.
Ash didn't mind being wrong. She was too busy taking super-detailed notes and sketches to answer the next question, though. But that was okay. She was still listening.
She raised her hand. "Professor, will you get sick from using starflowers as medicine or for things other than eating it directly?" This was very important to her and she needed to know. With this question pending, she was glad that she didn't have to harvest any.
She sat down on the fringes of the class. She already knew both spells, but maybe she could try them nonverbally. "Diffindo. Diffindo. Diffindo."Diffindo."Diffindo."Diffindo. There! Diffindo, Diffindo, Diffindo. Once she had that down, she moved onto Tergeo. She wasn't as familiar with it(she knew diffindo really well) so she had to practice more, making sure to get the pronunciation correct. "TURR-gee-oh. turrgeeoh. Tergeo. Tergeo. Tergeo. turrgeeoh. Tergeo."Tergeo? Tergeo."Tergeo."Tergeo. "Tergeo."Tergeo. Tergeo... Tergeo. Okay, so... her diffindo was great, her tergeo was imperfect but she remembered that was okay.
She practiced on a few random dandelions that grew around them. Then she celebrated by eating them. Also she picked some wildflowers and put them in her hair.
Phoenix was keeping himself busy taking some very diligent notes. Herbology was already proving to be not one of his best subjects; not that he was bad at it, it just wasn't as interesting to the first year as learning magic. But he was here and he was giving his best effort, and that's what he thought mattered.
He paid close attention to the plants presented, but was only familiar with one of them - the dandelion. But as someone already offered that answer, he stayed silent so as not to be redundant; instead, he took descriptive notes to be productive and certain they would be useful. And when the answers were revealed and the scroll unfurled, he furiously tried to scribble down as much as he could. There was just so much information!
And then there were spells. Phoenix was eager to learn all of them and jotted down the info about them as well in his notes. But perhaps one spell at a time - Diffindo. "Diff-INN-doh... diff-INN-doh!" The first year tried out the pronunciation first to make sure he was saying it correctly, then tried the wand movement. It was a little more complex, but hopefully he had the slashing done properly. Now to test it out on.... uhh... Phoenix looked around before settling on some of the grass growing beneath his feet to give the spell a try.
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started like a knight in a fairytale_______________________________________________
ended like a moth in flames______________________ ______________________don't you worry I'll be fine _________________________________________________you were good for the plot line
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……. Kinsay offered her cousin a polite smile. Even though he did not deserve one. She could tell Atlas was embarrassed too, and not wanting to make things any worse, she nodded. ”Very handsome,” she agreed quietly, just for the two of them as class began. Um. Anyway.
She already knew how to do Diffindo and felt quite confident in her ability and so, instead, of practicing Tergeo, she opted for the severing charm…. Trying not to think about the way that Atlas totally avoided her. It was fine. She was fine. She had bigger things to worry about these days anyway.
“Diffindo”
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Days of Potter 2023:___________________________ Which Bertie Botts Flavour Are You? You are Lemon!
Summer couldn't think of anything for the second question so she kept quiet, but she knew her friend Desiree would say something, she was a lot more clever.
She then heard the professor say something about spells, what in the name was Flipnsnipwitit, it sounded like something from Mary Poppings, maybe she invented this saying as well.
Now though she knew she could do the Diffindo charm "Diff-in-doh!" Summer practiced, a few times, she then turned to her friend Desiree and whisper. "What is the other spell supposed to do and do you know it?" Summer had no clue so yeah it was ask a friend time.
"I'll...just be here in on this patch of grass," he informed both Mercer and Kinsay before side stepping away and plopping himself on the ground to practicing the Severing Charm on a couple of the taller blades of grass. He managed just fine...but ever the distracted one...he also managed to sever the shoelaces on his left shoe clear down the middle so the little bits sort of fanned out on either side in defeat.
...at least it hadn't also been his foot?
"Careful there, Mr. Flamsteed--don't cut off anything important," cautioned Tapio, who by now was walking among the students as they practised. Atlas had been distracted for most of the class, but at least he was still trying.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Weasley174
Now though she knew she could do the Diffindo charm "Diff-in-doh!" Summer practiced, a few times, she then turned to her friend Desiree and whisper. "What is the other spell supposed to do and do you know it?" Summer had no clue so yeah it was ask a friend time.
"To clean and help dry out the herbs to make it easier to transport and store them," Tapio remarked as he passed by. He was pretty sure he'd already said that, but he didn't mine repeating it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by astrocat
She raised her hand. "Professor, will you get sick from using starflowers as medicine or for things other than eating it directly?" This was very important to her and she needed to know. With this question pending, she was glad that she didn't have to harvest any.
"Borage will not make you sick exactly, it's just that it has properties known to be a risk for certain things like liver ailments or cancer. Actually, it's the oil in particular that's considered a danger, but it's best to limit consumption of the leaves and flowers and to avoid it if you already have health problems. In medicines, it's safe to take under the direction of a Healer. However, I don't want any of you to be eating it today, if you should find some."
Tapio could see that Ashley, Jude, Kinsay, Phoenix, and a number of others seemed to be managing the spells fairly well (or at least Diffindo--cutting things was always more exciting than cleaning them up). At any rate, Tapio decided it was time to move on.
"All right, that's all the time we have for practice right now--maybe you can help each other in the field if some of you are having trrouble with one. But right now, it's time to head out into the meadows and hedgerows and look for these herbs. Remember that Wild Garlic likes to grow in shaded areas and Corn Mint likes moist places. And it may be too early for Borage or Ground Elder, but you can look for it just in case. Use Diffindo to clip a specimen of any of the plants you find, and use Tergeo to clean them up and dry them off a little, before putting them in you baskets." Here Tapio pointed to the ground under the tree, where there was a little pile of wicker baskets. "Everybody take a basket--there should be enough for everyone to have one. You can go alone, in pairs, or in small groups. And have fun!"
[OOC: Now we've come to the main activity. Have your character get a basket and go out, alone or with others as you choose. You can post them going to different areas on the Grounds, but please keep your posts within this thread (in other words, if you go to the Great Lake, just say so, but don't post over in the Great Lake thread). You can find one or more of the plants from class, find nothing, or find the wrong ones (just specify that you thought it was an herb from class but it isn't in your post). You can combine everything into one post, or make several. You have about 4 days for this, till sometime Wed. 7/20. Enjoy!]
~ Mrs. Steve Harrington ~ It be like that sometimes.
Yes, Jude was ready to move on as he hadn’t seen the need for him to do much practicing. He planned on venturing out alone but would keep an eye out for any of his classmates who might need assistance during the course of the activity.
After grabbing one of the baskets, the Hufflepuff started for the Lake. He had changed his mind about the Stinging Nettles at the last minute as he didn’t fancy getting all itchy should he fail to handle the plants correctly. In his head, he carried an image of what Corn Mint looked like and kept his eyes peeled for the plants. Jude paused near the beech tree at the edge of the Lake. In his opinion, it was fairly moist here…
All he needed now was to locate the Corn Mint. There were some other plants about that he couldn’t identify, some that he could including… Corn Mint! Woot! Oh look! There was a small cluster of them! Colour the Hufflepuff delighted. He’d get right down to harvesting right now!
Tapio looked around to make sure everyone had the equipment they needed and were headed to the right places (and not to the wrong ones, for example, the Forbidden Forest). Mr. Anders seemed to be headed for the Lake--plenty of plants to be found there. And everyone had their gloves, so hopefully no one would get stung by a nettle (though Tapio had some poultices ready for that possibility). He began to wander through the area in case anyone needed any help (and perhaps to harvest a plant or two himself).
[OOC: You have about 24 more hours or so for this activity. Class will end some time tomorrow evening]
~ Mrs. Steve Harrington ~ It be like that sometimes.
“Diffindo!’’ Jude muttered as he did the appropriate wand movement. A piece of the Corn Mint plant that he had chosen to work on came away easily. The Severing Charm was repeated once more since he figured he could work on multiple sprigs together. That saved a bit of time, didn’t it? Holding the two sprigs in his right palm, he began the drying process.
“Tergeo!’’ Bits of dirt that had been sitting on the leaves vanished and they certainly looked drier. Huh… who knew that harvesting plants could usually be this easy? Too bad the Hufflepuff didn’t have more time for gardening. With the sprigs clean and dry, they were added to the basket. Perhaps he’d harvest a few more sprigs of Corn Mint before moving on… yes, that was a good idea.
Rhibear ~ Madam Solo ~ Dark Brooding Girl ~ Accio Jedi ~ Gryffinclaw ~ Just a doll
SPOILER!!: Mini activity catchup
Desiree stared at the ground, her cheeks blushing the same shade of pink as her coveralls. She couldn’t believe she’d just repeated another student’s answer! Was she so focused on figuring out what the plants had in common that she blocked out everything else, or did she just space out like a complete ditz? At least she’d been on the right track with her tea guess. Okay, no more stupid mistakes!
She listened extra closely to the spell demonstration, determined not to make a fool of herself again, and her mood brightened when she heard which spells they were doing. Tergeo… She knew how to do that spell! She taught herself last year; it was practically a must-know for surviving the messier lessons at this school! Looks like her fear of getting dirty was finally going to come in handy! She wasn’t as experienced with Diffindo, but she was sure she could figure it out herself. She watched the wand movement intently, committing it to memory. Okay, up, down, right, then back up. Got it!
She had to stifle a giggle at the mention of Flipinsnipwitit. That sounded like an incantation Cinderella's fairy godmother would use! She was vaguely curious about that spell, though, and even more so about the drying charm Professor Devries mentioned. She’d already learned a drying charm. She wondered if it was the same one or if there was a different drying charm just for plants. Oh well, she supposed she’d find out next lesson!
Since she already knew Tergeo, Desiree decided to practice Diffindo first. She started with the wand movement, just like her dad said to do when learning a new spell. Up, down, right, and up again; up, down, right, up… After a few tries, she felt she had the wand movement down. Time to try the incantation! “Diff-INN-doh,” she said under her breath. “Diffindo, Diffindo…” Okay, that wasn’t too difficult. Time to put both parts of the spell together and try it for real!
She aimed her wand at a nearby blade of grass and cast, “Diffindo!” Well, that sort of worked. The grass had severed, but only halfway. It was just sort of dangling there by a thread. Okay, let’s try that again! “Diffindo!” she said, a little more firmly this time, as she made the funny wand movement. That time, it completely severed the grass.
Desiree was about to practice Tergeo when she heard Summer’s question, but Professor Devries answered it before she had the chance. She smiled encouragingly at her friend. “I can help you with Tergeo, Summer,” she said. “Just point your wand at the target and say the spell, like this…” Spotting a particularly muddy blade of grass, she pointed her wand and cast, “Tergeo!” In an instant, the mud was gone. There, that was better! Hopefully the grass would think so too… if grass could think. She knew that if she was a blade of grass, she wouldn’t want to be all muddy and gross!
By the time the class moved on to the next activity, Desiree was feeling pretty confident with the spells. She listened, making a mental note of where to find the herbs. After hearing the directions, she decided to look for wild garlic first. Corn mint may like moist environments, but Desiree did not! Moist environments usually meant mud, yuck! Turning to Summer, she said, “I’m going to look for wild garlic. Want to come?”
After pulling on her dragonhide gloves, she collected a basket from the pile and started toward the pathways, her bright blue eyes scanning the area for shady spots. She spied a group of trees a little ways off the path on the left side. That looked like a nice shady place to find wild garlic!
She approached the first tree, but there was no sign of wild garlic in the area in front of the tree, Maybe around back? She circled the tree and found absolutely nothing. Oh well, there were a lot more shady trees to search! She moved on to the second tree in the group and then the third, still coming up empty-handed.
Desiree was beginning to give up hope of finding any wild garlic here when she spotted a cluster of leaves and white flowers at the base of the fourth tree. Could it be-? As she got closer, she recognized the white star-shaped flowers. Yes! Wasting no time she made the wand movement for Diffindo and aimed at a sprig. “Diffindo!” The sprig severed, and she gingerly picked it up by one end. “Tergeo!” she cast, pointing her wand. Once the sprig was clean and dry, she placed it in her basket and repeated the process with a few more sprigs. She could’ve picked the entire patch, but she decided to leave some for others. Speaking of which…
Desiree looked back to see if Summer had followed. “Hey, there’s some wild garlic up here!” she called.
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Old voices I had thought long since dead whisper of another life I might have led If I could take that second chance, If I could make my life anew, If only dreams came true...
The students were making excellent progress, Tapio thought, and no misbehavior or accidents. But, looking up at the progress of the sun, Tapio realized that it was time for this lesson to end. Pointing his wand at his throat, he murmured, "Sonorus!" and then called loudly, "All right, everyone--I know there are still a lot of herbs out there, but it's time for class to end today. The plants will still be there tomorrow, if you feel the urge to harvest some more. We can always use them. For now, though, everyone finish up what you're doing and bring your baskets back to where we started class. Don't forget to write down what herbs you think you got on a piece of parchment and include that in your baskets. And thank you all for such a good class!"
Tapio himself walked back to the large tree where he'd set up his things at the beginning of class and waited until all the students returned.
[OOC: Okay, everyone, class is ending. I'll keep the thread open another 24 hrs. if you want to play your character leaving, and feel free to also catch up on the main activity if you're coming back late. And thanks so much for coming!]
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Herbology Lesson 1: Hedgerow Herbs 
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