Oh the joys of fuzzy black things on Care of Magical Creatures

DH Kiva Kijewski

December 07, 2006 11:12 PM

Lesson 1, Years 3-4 by DH Kiva Kijewski

Kiva was busy cleaning up the clearing after her first class had left. Even though they never did much but sit or stand around, the place always seemed disorganized when the group of students left. It could be because the crate was half dumped or parchments of papers were laying around, but it seemed more than that. Kiva liked to think that part of it was the students had an abundance of energy that she just couldn't keep up with, but perhaps it was all just in her head. Being as emotionally drained as she had been these last few months, perhaps Kiva was the dellusional one and not Simon. She could hear her next batch of students making their way down the paths, so she quickly finished what she was doing and turned around to await their arrival.

\r\n\r\nWhen she was sure that everyone had arrived, Kiva greeted them all with a cheerful smile. "Good day everyone, I'm glad to see all of your familiar faces having returned for another year here at Sonora." Kiva said, pacing in front of them as she had done in her first lesson. "Today's lesson is going to be a bit different. Some of you older students might remember learning about the jarveys last year as well as gnomes. Well, this lesson is somewhat like that one only, not with Jarveys and not with gnomes." Kiva paused and moved around to a crate that was positioned on the table she had transfigured before running into Simon earlier that day. "I suggest anyone wearing jewelry or watches to take them off and hide them in your pockets or bags." Kiva worned before pulling out a creature.

\r\n\r\nThe creature was black and fluffy, sporting a long snout. Kiva thought they were the most adorable creatures, but she was sure some might find them to be rather ugly. "This is called a niffler." Kiva said, raising the one in her arms out a bit, though the niffler snuggled closer to her, causing her smile affectionately at it. "Nifflers are originally from the UK, but are exported around the world. They are sweet creatures and love attention. Their main purpose in the wizarding society is to find treasure. You see, they are attracted to glittery things such as gold or diamonds. Their snout allows them to burrow deep beneath the Earth's surface to find these so called treaures." Kiva explained.

\r\n\r\n"Most nifflers are owned by Goblins, since they run the banking systems, however, some people do have them as their own. I want to warn you all though, that nifflers should never be considered for a house pet. They destroy homes. They seek everything glittery, and will do what it takes to get them." Kiva said, trying to get them to understand just how destructive these creatures could truly be.

\r\n\r\n"Now, for this lesson, you will need a partner and one niffler between the both of you." Kiva said, waiting for the groans she was sure to come. She figured that by now these students ought to be used to working in pairs. "With the help of Si-Mr. Tellermen-there are gold coins, no they are not real gold coins, burried throughout the gardens. The group who finds the most coins will get a treat of their choosing, so long as it's agreeable and appropriate." Kiva anounced to them all. "Alright, find your partners, grab a niffler, and have some fun."

\r\n\r\nOOC: Okay everyone, I'm looking for how well you write your reponses (make sure they are at least 2 paragraphs, 5 sentences each), grammar, and how well you develop your character. Take your time and have fun! \r\n\r\n\r\n

Subthreads:

In search of a partner. by Allie St. Martin with Adam Brockert

If I were a pirate, I'd so want one... by Dalila Bastet with Saul Pierce, Dalila

Oh the joys of fuzzy black things by Bella Santoro with Devian Dupree, Bella

Nifflers? My sisters are more destructive. by Guenther Heindrich with Briony O'Leary

I'm happy with the real gold I already have, thank by Jordanna Howard with Geoffrey Layne

It's fluffy! by Lexi Stafford with Anne Wright, Lexi

The Winners Revealed. by Professor K

0 DH Kiva Kijewski Lesson 1, Years 3-4 0 DH Kiva Kijewski 1 5

Allie St. Martin

December 08, 2006 11:48 PM

In search of a partner. by Allie St. Martin

Allie gave Professor Kijewski a warm smile as she entered the class clearing, but made no effort to head towards the front. She had never seen anything really dangerous in her first two years at Sonora, but she and her classmates were now third years. Two months of aging meant that they were no longer in classes with the first years, but Allie had no idea if that also meant more challenging and potentially dangerous material to cover in classes. Besides, even if a little caution hadn't been wise on its own, there was that the people in front were the most likely to be embarrassed.

The other students began trickling in, third years and fourth years arriving singly or in groups. Allie exchanged smiles with her twin and waved shyly to Anne, who broke off what looked like an argument with Geoffrey Layne long enough to grin and return the gesture. Geoffrey hesitated, then gave her a polite, slightly disinterested nod. The beginning of the lecture gave her an excuse to turn away after nodding back a sight more cordially than he had. She really didn't see whatever it was Anne saw in him, unless her cousin's taste ran to excessive arrogance. Merlin knew that Anne could be plenty arrogant herself, sometimes.

She frowned slightly as she undid the backs of her earrings. Why did they have to take off their jewelry? It was an outdoor class, and moving in a skirt and keeping it and her blouse clean had gotten hard in the past, but she had never seen a watch hinder anyone. The frown became anxious when she realized the professor hadn't said where to put their things. Her mother would have her hide if she lost the earrings. Wincing as she did, she stuffed them into the inside pocket of her robes and hoped running and jumping wouldn't be part of handling the black creature Professor Kijewski pulled out.

She filed the basics away automatically, saving only the most important facts to let her pass. Her grades had actually improved since she stopped trying to remember everything, and if the broom wasn't broken, Allie wasn't going to try to fix it. It was hard to believe the thing the professor was holding could wreck a house, but if it went after glittery things the way Professor Kijewski was saying...jewelry shone, a little light could turn the crystalware into prisms, and many of the vases in the house were glazed or gold-edged or both. The tassels on some of the curtains and rugs had gold thread, and the tea service was solid silver. Eileen and Allie's mother would go into conniptions if any of those things or a thousand others Allie could think of were harmed in any way.

Then the dread word was spoken: partners. Teppenpaws had a reputation for friendliness and such, but while she wasn't as painfully, overwhelmingly shy as she had been when she came to Sonora, Allie still froze about fifty percent of the times she tried to deal with others. Her eyes flickered in Lila's direction for a heartbeat, then went to a neutral point above the professor's head. They had agreed - and it had been an agreement, not a case of Lila simply telling her what was what - that they wouldn't work together in class if it was avoidable. The united front put people off, and they had to socialize. Both parents had said so.

That left her with one thing to do, really: walk up to someone and ask. Her breathing became deep and slow at the thought. Closing her eyes, she turned her head, opened her eyes again, and refocused them on one person. That was who she was going to talk to. Wetting her lips uncertainly with the tip of her tongue, she concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other until she reached where she wanted to be. For one moment, she thought she wasn't going to be able to say anything.

Anne and Gwen and Lila were all...confident, she supposed the word would be. They never seemed to have trouble with this kind of thing. Imitating one of them would never work, but maybe she could mix traits a little. She smiled, looking much more like Lila than usual. The features were identical, but only people who were just meeting them had much trouble telling the difference, or so it had always seemed. "Hi," she said, and was startled by the word choice as much as by the almost bright tone she'd said it in. "I'm Alexandra St. Martin, Teppenpaw third year. Do you have a partner yet?"\n\n

16 Allie St. Martin In search of a partner. 76 Allie St. Martin 0 5

Adam Brockert

December 09, 2006 12:32 AM

Um, I'll work with you.. by Adam Brockert

Care of Magical Creatures wasn't a favorite class of Adam's. It was outside and people tended to talk rather than listen to the professor. He wasn't so much worried about not being able to hear what the teacher said, as much as he was worried that they were talking about him. He believed they were probably saying nasty things of course, as nobody would ever say anything nice about Adam.

The other thing he didn't really like was that there was the possibility of working in partners.It was bad enough that they might be dealing with potentially dangerous creatures,(though they hadn't yet,)but the idea that that Adam might have to work with somebody else, who'd probably end up hating him the way Echo had in Defense last year, petrified the third year so much that it made him sick to his stomach. Actually this was a fear that plauged Adam in pretty much every class.

Today was to be no exception. Adam's heart sank and a wave of acid welled up in his belly. He knew nobody would want to work with him. Especially if they remembered the pumpkin incident. He was probably the most despised person in his whole grade. Ginger and Pepper probably would even find other people to work with since lots of people liked them.

Adam began to quake as one of the St. Martin twins approached him. Naturally he wasn't sure which one it was. He didn't know them very well. Lila was in his house, and she made him nervous. She seemed like the type of proper pureblood that Adam wanted to avoid more than he did most people.

"Hi,I'm Alexandra St. Martin, Teppenpaw third year. Do you have a partner yet?"

He felt a tad relieved. It wasn't Lila, it was Alexandra. Though Adam wasn't quite sure how that would be better, but she did say she was in Teppenpaw. "Um, no." Of course Adam didn't have a partner. "I'm uh, Adam Brockert, third year Crotalus. Uh, I-I'll work with you." Though after this you'll never want anything to do with me ever again, he mentally added. Nobody but Kaylie would probably be able to stand him very long, Adam was almost positive about that.

\n\n

11 Adam Brockert Um, I'll work with you.. 78 Adam Brockert 0 5

Allie

December 09, 2006 4:37 PM

Thankee, sir. by Allie

A momentary swell of pride at having taken the initiative was crushed by embarrassment over forgetting to curtsy and anxiety over remembering that she could still wind up looking a plain fool. She kept smiling as best she could, mentally repeating the mantra that most people were nicer than Morgaine or, though she felt horribly disloyal for even thinking it, Lila. Most people didn't go out of the way to make anyone who so much as looked at them the tiniest bit the wrong way look stupid. Even so, the smile still widened when the answer was agreeable. Nervous, but agreeable.

"It's nice to meet you," she said. "You can call me Allie, if you like." Talking always got easier once she had started, if only because of formulas. It was the next part of the routine small talk, but Allie didn't ask if he knew her sister. It was sort of hard to go through three years of sharing a House and a year with someone without at least figuring out her name, and twins stuck out. Not everyone knew them - most people didn't, actually - but Allie was prepared to wager that everyone in the third year knew about her and Lila.

She didn't know much about Adam at all. He was quiet, but that wasn't overly uncommon with Crotali. He got upset easily, if she was remembering things right. He had a relative - a sister, she thought - who was the Teppenpaw prefect. Not much to base a conversation off of, really. If you had to do things in groups, class had to be the best place to do it, because working could be used to excuse a lack of good conversation, not like with parties. "I'll go get us a niffler," she said. It wasn't something she would normally do, but the nifflers didn't look very threatening, and what she had seen made her think he was probably even less willing to interact with the creatures from which the class got its name than she was.

She began stroking the niffler's dark head as she went back to Adam. "It's a pity they don't make good pets," she said, hoping to ease any awkwardness. "It kind of reminds me of a big, black version of Nana, almost." She felt herself start to blush. There was no calling rambling anything but rambling. Maybe she should have left things as they lay. "Nana's my puffskein," she added, hoping to at least make her rambling less confusing. "Do you think we should just turn it loose and see what happens?"\n\n

16 Allie Thankee, sir. 76 Allie 0 5

Dalila Bastet

December 10, 2006 2:56 PM

If I were a pirate, I'd so want one... by Dalila Bastet

Dalila walked over the grass to where they normally have Care of Magical Creatures. She basked in the sun, feeling very sorry for everyone who had to deal with things like cold and snow. There were already some students waiting for the lesson to begin, but not many. Dalila shrugged and sat down in the middle to wait for everyone else to arrive.

When Professor K told everyone to remove their jewelery, Dalila was excited and disappointed at the same time. Excited because the removal of jewelery meant they were learning about nifflers; disappointed because today was the first day that she had worn the gold earrings her mother had brought her from Egypt. She had also happened to be wearing the necklace her mother gave her a couple years ago at the alumni banquet. Sighing to herself she removed the offending jewelery and placed them in her pocket. It was a small price to pay for a fun class with a niffler to play with.

Dalila grinned when the niffler was held up. She wanted one, but decided against it when the professor announced what exactly they do to a house. Her grandmother would have a fit. However, Dalila dashed over to the enclosure to grab a niffler before they were all gone. Her hand fund a fluffy body and she picked it up and stared at it. It stared back and then stuck its snout in her hair, sniffing around. Now she was glad she took her earrings out. Now all she needed was a partner. Dalila walked up to the first niffler-less person she found.

"You need a partner?"\n\n

0 Dalila Bastet If I were a pirate, I'd so want one... 60 Dalila Bastet 0 5

Bella Santoro

December 10, 2006 9:06 PM

Oh the joys of fuzzy black things by Bella Santoro

Bella arrived to Care of Magical Creatures right along side many of her yearmates. As soon as she entered the clearing, she threw off her robes and laid completely flat on her back on the ground. She neither liked nor disliked this class. It was just a class to her. It had the potential of being fun, but most of the time, the creatures were dull. Last years lesson with the gnomes had been entertaining, Bella's partner...not so much.

She wore her favorite Weird Sisters t-shirt that clung to her body showing off her ever growing curves. Her ripped shorts fell midway between the top of her thighs and her knees. Her black knee high boots laced all the way up to her knees. The exposed area of her leg was covered in bright red fishnet stockings. Her make up was heavy around the eyes with glossy lips while her hair was set in natural looking waves that set itself nicely with her cut. Bella's style was completely different than the one she adorn the year previous, but this one suited her perfectly.

Bella shifted slightly in her spot to get a look at the Professor as the lesson started. Luckily, Bella never wore jewelry. She always forgot to put them on in the morning. But the idea that they were asked to be removed intrigued Bella slightly. Watching the Professor, Bella grinned at the sight of the Niffler. She had heard of those but never really seen one besides those in books. She used to pretend that her cousin's crup was really a Niffler and that they were treasure hunters exploring the world for all it's riches.

The word partners caused Bella to groan loudly. She hated working in pairs. Especially because Bella didn't really have friends, so finding a partner was that much harder for her. Standing and brushing off the grass that stuck itself to her clothes, Bella moved to the crate and pulled a niffler from it's cage. Smiling, Bella hugged the niffler close to her and wandered back over to her belongings. She wasn't sure if she ought to yell out for someone to be her partner or just wait to see how was partnerless. She hated the fact that she never really made friends here and now would be paying for it.

Taking a deep breath and sucking it up, Bella saw someone without a niffler and, presumably, without a partner, "Hey, hey you! Wanna join up?"\n\n

0 Bella Santoro Oh the joys of fuzzy black things 0 Bella Santoro 0 5

Saul Pierce

December 11, 2006 9:14 AM

If I were a Pirate, I'd have a sword and go ARRR! by Saul Pierce

Saul Pierce loved Comec. Last year had started with a crup-dog and magic fleas, and his first year had launched off with puffballs, so he only expected this year to start even better. He wasn't disappointed as he listened to her describe their next creature. Snifflers!

He wasn't wearing any jewelery or watches, so he didn't need to take anything off, but he checked himself over just to make sure when she said how single minded they could get. Nope, he was good.

Engrossed as he was in verifying that he had no glittery things, he almost missed the part where his cousin was mentioned. If she hadn't started to call him Simon, before stopping mid-name, he might not have noticed. (Saul wasn't sure when he'd last heard anyone call Simon "Mr. Tellerman" so even if he had been paying attention when she said it, he might have wondered what Uncle Harvey was doing at Sonora.)

But she had slipped up, gaining Saul's attention, so now he knew Simon had helped bury the gold. That just made the class zillions of times more exciting. Plus, Simon probably knew it was Saul's class and then he'd ask, and Saul couldn't tell him he didn't win. At least, not without a really good story to accompany it.

As if that weren't enough incentive, Professor K then offered a treat to the winners. A treat of their own choosing. Visions of Pepperoni Pizza danced before his eyes and he hoped that this time he'd actually be granted it. He was pretty sure he'd heard the promise correctly this time.

So excited was he to get started with the Sonoran Gold Rush (he wondered if Old Derwent had had Snifflers when he was collecting gold in California - maybe Aunt Regina would know), that he started scanning the ground for gold coins even as he made his way toward the Snifflers.

He didn't make it that far before he was intercepted by one of the fourth years who was already carrying one.

Saul grinned as he answered her question about whether or not he had a partner. "I do now. What's your opinion on pepperoni pizza for when we win?"\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

1 Saul Pierce If I were a Pirate, I'd have a sword and go ARRR! 82 Saul Pierce 0 5

Guenther Heindrich

December 11, 2006 5:30 PM

Nifflers? My sisters are more destructive. by Guenther Heindrich

Guenther smiled, looking around. He wondered if he would be able to find a partner. Usually, he was partnered with the same people. Maybe somebody new would hang out with him. This seemed like a fun lesson. He had always loved COMC, but this was going to be even better than usual.

"Hello," he said to the person next to him. "Would you like to work with me?"

One of his friends, who just happened to be a girl, had helped him with his social skills over the summer. He still had a giant lump in the pit of his stomach every time he talked to someone he didn't know very well, and he still wasn't comfortable with his height. \n\n

0 Guenther Heindrich Nifflers? My sisters are more destructive. 0 Guenther Heindrich 0 5

Dalila

December 11, 2006 5:39 PM

Then you'd make a good pirate. by Dalila

Dalila grinned back at the boy she assumed was a third year. He seemed nice and he mentioned pepperoni pizza. Nothing better than pepperoni pizza; except of course, when you win one.

"Pepperoni pizza sounds like an awesome prize!" Dalila spouted energetically. As though it liked the idea of pepperoni pizza as well, the niffler Dalila was holding began struggling in her arms and sniffing the air.

"I think this little guy likes the idea too. I'm Dalila Bastet, by the way." Dalila held out one hand while the other still held the struggling niffler.\n\n

0 Dalila Then you'd make a good pirate. 0 Dalila 0 5

Saul Pierce

December 12, 2006 5:13 PM

brandishes sword ARRR! by Saul Pierce

Saul grinned back, hugely excited now that both Dalila and the Sniffler were on board with the Pizza Prize. "Saul," he introduced himself shortly with an awkward shaking of her hand. He didn't give his self introduction the full treatment he usually lent to it. He was way too eager to start looking for the gold. "I'm with the Sniffler, let's go."

He hurried over to the edge of the clearing where it was more likely the gold was stashed, "It's like we're searching for buried treasure or something," he said when Dalila caught up. He was nearly bouncing with the excitement of it all. "Come on, Polly," he encouraged the Sniffler, giving it the first Pirate-like name he could think of, "Find those Pieces of Eight. Go on! Find the gold!"
\n\n

1 Saul Pierce *brandishes sword* ARRR! 82 Saul Pierce 0 5

Dalila

December 12, 2006 8:02 PM

brandishes parrot squawk? by Dalila

Dalila quickly followed Saul to the edge of the clearing, holding onto the niffler tightly, a big grin on her face. She let the niffler go in the bushes and cheered it on along with Saul.

"Yeah! Go Polly! Wooo!" Polly dove in and out of the bushes nearby as though they were waves in the water, every once in awhile coming up with a gold coin or two. And with every gold coin, Dalila's cheering grew more excited.

"Look how many Polly's gotten!" Dalila exclaimed and then looked around to see how well the other groups were doing. \n\n

0 Dalila *brandishes parrot* squawk? 0 Dalila 0 5

Saul Pierce

December 12, 2006 9:34 PM

Polly got the treasure by Saul Pierce

"Go, Polly, go!" Saul exclaimed, getting even more excited when Dalila was just as into it as he was. "You're doing great, Polly, keep it up!" He folded up a flap of his robe to collect the coins in. He couldn't help but nod in agreement when Dalila remarked excitedly on the volume they were collected. "Yeah! You go, Polly! You're the best Sniffler ever!"

Polly just kept on digging and snuffling around the bushes, seeming to be as excited and Saul and Dalila. She brought back another coin and Saul added it to collection, "That's great, find us some more, Polly! Glittery gold, you know you love it!"\n\n

1 Saul Pierce Polly got the treasure 82 Saul Pierce 0 5

Adam B.

December 13, 2006 11:20 PM

You're welcome, mam by Adam B.

"Er,it's nice to meet you too." Adam replied. "Allie.Uh, you can call me Adam. My name doesn't work with nicknames but that's ok."

Oh Merlin, he was babbling. He sucked so bad at conversation. That had to be the most idiotic thing he could have said. Adam turned bright red, as Allie left to go get the Niffler. He had that familiar desire to flee, to run away because he'd made an absolute fool of himself and Allie was probably laughing at him on the inside and thinking what a dork he was. Adam felt like he was going to throw up.

For a few awkward moments after she came back with the animal, Adam looked down at the ground. Then Allie began to talk again.

"Nana's my puffskein,"

He looked up at her. "You have a puffskien?" Adam asked. He actually smiled a little. "I have one too. Mine is named Peanut." He hoped she wouldn't laugh. Even though Allie had one too, Adam was still a guy . He was probably supposed to have a more ferocious pet, but he didn't want one. He loved Peanut to bits and really like puffskiens in general. In fact, he was even a little jealous that the first and second years got to keep the ones they'd had in their COMC lesson, even though he already had one.

\n\n

11 Adam B. You're welcome, mam 78 Adam B. 0 5

Briony O'Leary

December 13, 2006 11:22 PM

I wish I had sisters. by Briony O'Leary

She generally wasn't very good at Care of Magical Creatures, but it was one of her favorite classes, just because it was outdoors. Briony quickly took a seat on the grass that was warmed by the sun, among the other students. She wondered what the Professor would have in store for them this year. Last year, she had been a second year, paired with the first years, but this year, she was a third year, so they were paired with the fourth years. She always felt a little shy around the older students. She glanced around at them. All were familiar from passing them in the hallways and from her first year, but she didn't actually know any of them. She hoped, if she got an older student, they were one of the nice ones. She had heard the stories of the Fourth year Crotalus girls. She shuddered slightly at how mean some could be.

When the lecture began, Briony perked up to listen. Today, they would be working with nifflers. She wasn't sure if the idea sounded apppealing or not. They apparently could be very destructive, but on the other hand, they found treasure, which she supposed could be very useful, but she also knew that people could become very greedy about things like that.

She reached under her hair, to behind her neck, to unfasten her locket, since they had been instructed to put them away for safekeeping. It was a silver toned heart locket that her father had given her mother for their first Christmas together. Inside were two pictures - one of her father and one of her mother. It was her most cherished possession and she placed it with care in her bag. She hated taking it off, but she was more afraid that it would get ruined by the niffler.

With this done, she was about to try and find a partner when another student approached her. A boy no less! She had found this summer that they seemed to be drawing her attention more. She really wished her mother was alive for her to talk to, or at least had an older female to talk to, so she could figure these new emotions out.

As if on cue, the pink rose to her cheeks and she stumbled slightly on her words, "Um, sure. I'm Briony. What's your name?"\n\n

0 Briony O'Leary I wish I had sisters. 75 Briony O'Leary 0 5

Devian Dupree

December 14, 2006 2:22 AM

Re: Oh the joys of fuzzy black things by Devian Dupree

Care of Magical Creatures was not Devian's forte, even though he did well enough in the class. The only interesting thing about the class this year was that he was now a third year, which meant working with the fourth years, and in particular fourth year girls, who were becoming in his opinion rather hot.

Of course, some better than others. Looking around the grassy area, he found a group of cute girls to sit near. Once settled, he was about to try and strike up a conversation when the Professor started the class. He gave an internal groan. He hated listening to lectures, but every once in awhile something worth knowing came up. Ironically, this was one of those times. Something he thought would never happen in this class, but alas there it was, nifflers. A creature that searched for treasure, and with treasure, Devian knew came power, and Devian wanted power and all that came with it.

He was about to get a niffler when a particularly attractive girl shouted at him, 'Hey, hey you! Wanna join up?' Devian's full lips curved into a smile. Yes, yes, he would. This girl didn't look like all the others. She stood out in a rather dramatic way. He briefly wondered why he hadn't noticed her before. With all the confidence in the world, he strode in his arrogant way over to the girl.

"Devian Dupree," he introduced himself in a lazy manner. "And the answer is yes."\n\n

0 Devian Dupree Re: Oh the joys of fuzzy black things 70 Devian Dupree 0 5

Bella

December 14, 2006 8:59 PM

At least they're useful by Bella

Watching the boy walk closer to her, Bella wondered if it had been a good idea to have chosen him with the look that was currently on his face. Bella waited for him to draw level with her before acknowledging him with a smile. His introduction had Bella's smile faultering for a moment.

Dupree. He was related to Nicoletta. Bella only knew the girl from classes and what rumors where had with her and her roommates, but none of them were all that good. Bella looked him over for a moment. The Duprees where similiar to the Santoros in that there a a handful of siblings currently at the school. The same could be said for the Careys. Though, Bella would predict that the Careys and the Duprees had more in common with one another than the Santoros did with either of them. Bella guessed it was more culture than anything else.

"Bella Santoro." Bella said in the same manner of introduction he gave to her. "And great, it saves me the bother of having to look for someone else." Bella added, her smile returning to her. "This seems like it can be a fun lesson, yeah? Not much for us to do but stand around and collect fake coins." Bella commented, looking around at the rest of the class. "Where shall we start?"\n\n

0 Bella At least they're useful 0 Bella 0 5

Guenther Heindrich

December 15, 2006 10:46 PM

6 year old triplets are a hassle! by Guenther Heindrich

Remembering what his friend Miranda had taught him, he said. "My name is Guenther Heindrich. I am a third year Aladren."

Smiling, he looked at the nifflers. "I suppose we should go get our bugger."

Guenther looked at her. He had been noticing girls more and more lately. He still had a little crush on Spike and also on Ginger, but this girl was pretty and seemed nice enough. He probably didn't need another crush on his list, but he probably didn't have power over his mind to choose that.
\n\n

0 Guenther Heindrich 6 year old triplets are a hassle! 0 Guenther Heindrich 0 5

Jordanna Howard

December 17, 2006 6:11 PM

I'm happy with the real gold I already have, thank by Jordanna Howard

Yet again Jordanna found herself in the horrible world that was Care of Magical Creatures. She’d overheard a group of firsties say that uniforms weren’t being enforced in this class, and the blond hoped it was true, because she certainly wasn’t wearing them. They were too hot to wear at this temperature and they would make her sweat, which was just gross. Instead she wore a pink button-front dress that hit her knee with pintucking at the waist to show off her new figure. The fourth year wore it conservatively of course (her mother wouldn’t have allowed to buy it otherwise) and only one of the buttons was left undone, in order to show off her necklace with a variety of tiny silver wands on it. Jordanna had caught some boy staring at her as she made her way down to the class, and had ignored it, unsure of what to do. She’d have to write one of her female cousins (they were all older than her, and more knowledgeable in the area of boys) about that.

Running a hand through loose, lanky corn colored hair; she frowned as the professor instructed them to take off their jewelry- why in the earth would Jordanna want to do that? Reluctantly she took off her earrings and necklace, and even her shoes and socks(the shoes had rhinestones on them, and wearing socks without shoes outside was just tacky) and stood barefoot in the grass. Putting her things into her black book bag, she felt completely disgusted. She loathed the feeling of the blades of grass in-between her orange pedicured toes. They didn't even match what she was wearing! Why couldn't the teacher have an iota of consideration and have warned them of this in advance?

The cause of her discomfort? A niffler! How hideous and revolting, she wished it would have stayed in the UK where it came from. Not only was it aesthetically displeasing, it was a scavenger . They were for Goblins and poor people and people without any class- not someone like her. This was positively demeaning!

Hands on her hips, she looked down at her poor feet that completely clashed with her outfit. She was definitely taking a nice long bath after this.
\n\n

0 Jordanna Howard I'm happy with the real gold I already have, thank 65 Jordanna Howard 0 5

Devian

December 18, 2006 1:10 AM

Indeed by Devian

Devian smirked slightly when Bella introduced herself in the same manner he had. She seemed to be a girl that could defiently hold her own, a plus in his book. He liked them with a little spice, because sugar was just too boring. It was why, he would never be seen going after a Teppenpaw. They were just way too...nice.

"Well, I guess we should start in the denser areas. They seem to be the best hiding spots," he offered, hoping it sounded as logical to her as it did to him.

He couldn't say he didn't want to win, but not for the prize. He could buy himself anything he wanted. No, he wanted to win to prove that he was better than his cousin, Chris. The guy didn't even act like a true Dupree. Devian sneered slightly. No, he acted whipped around that goody-two-shoes Teppenpaw prefect girlfriend of his. He vowed never to be like that.\n\n

0 Devian Indeed 0 Devian 0 5

Bella

December 18, 2006 4:20 PM

Right, well, anywho... by Bella

Bella glanced around the area to the places where Devian was indicating. It seemed like a fair place to start. And, as she looked around, it already looked like some of the groups were gathering gold already. Too bad it wasn't real gold.

Her eyes returned to the guy infront of her. He wasn't all that bad looking once the arrogant look was taking off of his face. She gave him a hard look as she studied him. Boys were mysteries to her. She had plenty of family members to study, but still, she couldn't quite figure them out.

Placing the niffler on the ground and watching it take off into the ground, Bella stood there watching in silence for a moment. Finally, she turned back to Devian, "How'd do you think they know who to come back to? I mean, they've only had a few moments with us, you'd think they would just go to the first person they see when they come back up."\n\n

0 Bella Right, well, anywho... 0 Bella 0 5

Briony

December 18, 2006 10:23 PM

Wait until they're teens by Briony

"Nice to meet you Guenther Heindrich," she said slightly teasing, but with a smile to her eyes. Looking at the nifflers, she asked, "So, which one do you think? That one seems to be full of personality."

She pointed at one that seemed to be trying to attract attention by prancing slighly.

"Isn't he delightful?" She said, clapping her hands together.

She went over and took the prancing niffler. She glanced around. Where should they start? There seemed to be a multitude of places.

"Let's try going over there," she said pointing towards a patch of grass that wasn't as dense as some of the others. "Coins should be really easy to find, then, and that'll give us more time to look in the denser areas."\n\n

0 Briony Wait until they're teens 0 Briony 0 5

Devian

December 18, 2006 10:39 PM

Subject lines are not my strong point by Devian

"I suppose that they know to come back to us due to our scent since most animals tend to distinguish by it," he reasoned. "We may have a little time to kill before he comes back. Want to take a seat?"

Devian gestured towards the soft grass, before taking a seat himself. While he waited, he idlely twirled a piece of grass with his fingers, as he tried to come up with something to talk about with her. He was very good at making a first impression, but after that he tended to fail.

"So, where is home for you?" He asked curiously. "I live in France with my parents and my sisters, Danae and Lucie."

Okay, it wasn't the best topic ever, but at least it was something. He hated the awkward get to know you conversations. It was so much easier with the initiation and then once you actually knew the person.

He was about to say more when the niffler came back with a few of the gold pieces. He took them from the creature and set him off in a nearby spot, so he wouldn't have to move much yet.

"Looks like he found two," he said, his hand out to show Bella.\n\n

0 Devian Subject lines are not my strong point 0 Devian 0 5

Bella

December 18, 2006 11:28 PM

They come and go with me by Bella

His answer was so obvious that Bella let out a soft laugh. Why hadn't she thought of that? It was so simple. Of course they would have known them from their scents. That's how most creatures distinguished one thing from another. "Of course! Sorry, I guess I've been a bit spacey with my thoughts. Scent, makes sense." Bella said, still giggling to herself.

Bella shrugged at his question, but didn't hesitate to sit back down on the ground. Most girls (and by most, she meant the few she knew from classes such as Jordanna) wouldn't be caught dead sitting on the dirt and grass. Bella, however, lounged on it. Kicking back and laying flat on her back with her arms beneath her head, Bella was rather comfortable and content. Even being from an upstanding Pureblood family, Bella was no prude and could have cared less about bugs, dirt, and people seeing her under (though she happened to be wearing shorts, so that wasn't much of an issue). Being raised in such a large family as she had been with all the boys, a girl needed to learn to cope in order to survive.

"Well, technically I'm from Los Angeles." Bella answered him, turning her head slightly to get a look at him. "But I only ever spend Christmas there. My dad's from Mexico and we spend the first half of summer there while my mom's from Spain-her maiden name is Chavez-and we spend the rest of our summers there." Bella said with a slight shrug. Even to her it sounded like she didn't really have a home at all. Sometimes, with all the traveling, it felt like that too. "So Nicoletta's not your sister? Is she your cousin or something?" Bella asked, curious as to his relationship with her yearmate.

"Excellent." Bella responded, eyeing the gold in Devian's hand. "Man, I used to wish I had a niffler when I was younger." Bella said rather wistfully. "My cousins and I used to play Pirates when we were younger. Their crup would become our 'niffler' and we'd hunt for treasure together." Bella laughed softly again. That had been long before she had started at Sonora. "It's a game I tought my neices too. By the way, crups make lousey Nifflers."\n\n

0 Bella They come and go with me 0 Bella 0 5

Allie

December 19, 2006 10:34 PM

Let's pretend I put something witty here. by Allie

"Of course it is," Allie agreed, nodding as Adam asserted that his name was one of the harder ones to shorten. "I've only got a nickname because Alexandra's the longest name in my entire family. My brother and sister won't answer to anything but their whole names." Not quite true - they would, sometimes, let her call them Li and Albie - but it was rare enough for that permission to be granted that it might as well have been. The rest of the St. Martins, with the exceptions of the Careys and Eileen if one cared to count them, were even worse suited to nicknaming.

She was starting to feel a little desperate when Adam just stared at the ground despite her efforts at diplomacy, but was saved from feeling like a total idiot by hairs when he responded to Nana. Allie found herself smiling warmly at him when he mentioned his Peanut. "They're such dears, aren't they?" Nana had been her main source of comfort those first rough days at Sonora, when she had still been half in shock about being separated from Lila. "And they're so easy to take care of that even I can't mess it up. I heard the younger years got them for the first lesson this time around, like we did." Morgaine had gotten in trouble for making fun of her during that lesson, as she recalled, but decided not to mention that. "Much better than flobberworms, don't you think?"

She looked at the black ball of fur still resting in her arms. "I suppose I'll just...let him go," she said, rather lamely in her opinion. "I don't know any more about these than Professor Kijewski told us. Lila always says I should read up on things before the start of the year, but I never do." She reddened as she realized she probably shouldn't have mentioned that, either. "It should find its own way." Daddy always said a firm, confident tone of voice was best, and that if she acted like she knew what she was doing and talking about, other people would believe it, too. Allie couldn't get down what he called a firm, confident tone of voice, and she wasn't sure she believed in his idea, but it was comforting to think of, in a way. She released the niffler in the direction of a pathway and crossed her fingers for luck.

A few minutes later, the niffler - she wanted to give it a name, but didn't know if it was male or female - came running back to spit something that glinted gold at her feet. "Look!" she said, pointing, forgetting to be reserved and dignified. "He found some! Good niffler, go on, get some more!" She realized she was almost bouncing up and down and immediately dropped her heels, turning red enough to almost pass for a newly-Sorted Crotalus. "Oh, um, I'm - sorry?" It sounded almost more like a question than an apology. "I didn't mean to get so overexcited." \n\n

16 Allie Let's pretend I put something witty here. 76 Allie 0 5

Geoffrey Layne

December 21, 2006 4:37 PM

I'd be happy to get some real gold... by Geoffrey Layne

Geoffrey stared at Anne, not caring if it was rude. There were times when manners ceased to be important. If a person he thought he knew proved him wrong by turning into a freak without warning or explanation one morning wasn't one of those times, Geoffrey didn't think he had ever experienced one. The clothes didn't sit quite right, and she had done something to her hair, but those oddities faded into insignificance when he noticed her face.

Anne was wearing make-up.

His sisters had played dress-up all the time when they were little, and he'd caught Helena playing with their mother's cosmetics only a week before school started. If he could have remembered even one occasion that Anne had joined in on that, then maybe it wouldn't have been such a shock, but as far as Geoff knew, she had never even pretended interest in that kind of thing. Her mother had all but been forced to wrestle with her to get her in lipstick for recitals. Turning first thirteen and then fourteen had had no affect; it had still been those same sharp features, take it or leave it. Until now.

She smiled, but it was a strange, half-wary grin. It was hers, though, unlike the strangely soft fake lines of her face. "I know I'm the hottest thing on the planet, Geoff, but gaping doesn't suit you." He considered trying to answer that, but settled for shaking his head. He'd never thought of Anne as hot before in his life - well, only once or twice, anyway. She wasn't his type. He liked blondes. Girly blondes, if they managed some semblance of a fully functioning brain. "Something up?"

"You look...different."

"Ten out of ten for observation," she said crisply. "Alicia taught me how to use all of this junk, so I figured, why not?" He hoped that was a rhetorical question. "If you're aiming on hearing the lecture, Geoff, we need to get closer to the others. Since the creatures are less likely to kill us if we know what they are, I'm going whether you come or not."

He seriously doubted Kijewski would give third years a potentially fatal lesson, but he paid attention to her anyway. His Head of House was still, from all he could see, herself. When told to take off anything glittery, he frowned at his watch for a moment before deciding that the sun could have a glittering affect on the bits of silvery metal holding the band to and the clock in place and took it off, stuffing it in his pocket. He was glad of it when the creature was revealed.

"Nasty things," he muttered to Anne. "My Grandfather Corin likes to tell about time one almost took off his second cousin's finger after his wedding ring."

Anne smothered a laugh. "What's the betting it attacks some Crotalus idiot who refused to take off her jewels?"

The inevitable cry of partners was raised by Kijewski and was met by sighs from Geoff and Anne: his resigned, hers relieved. She hated working with animals almost as much as he did working with most people. He crossed his fingers, hoping she wouldn't say it, but of course she did: "Divide and conquer, Caesar."

"We divide, I conquer," he returned. She insisted this was a good way to improve his social life - Helena had put all kinds of bizarre notions about his lack of one into her head - and to discourage rumors about their romantic involvement. That goal, he was entirely sympathetic to. "I'm already counting my fake-money winnings."

"We'll see," Anne said, then sauntered - there was no other word for it - off. She hadn't gone entirely mad, then. There were still some right things in his universe. Geoffrey began trying to scout out a partner.

There wasn't much to pick from. Anne's cousins were out of the picture because they were Anne's cousins. Everyone he even vaguely knew appeared to have taken up with someone already. He finally settled on Jordanna Howard, figuring that even if she was too stupid to carry on a decent conversation while the niffler did its thing, she would at least be nice to look at and get his mind off Anne and Anne's insanity. Since she showed no signs of doing anything other than staring at her feet, he went to retrieve a niffler, then gave her his best grin, though he doubted she noticed.

"Good morning, Miss Howard," he said, sketching a bow as well as he could around the niffler. He tried not to look too closely at her feet. He didn't think fireants had reached the deserts yet, but he was glad she was the one risking it and not him. "Do you need a partner?" He glanced in Anne's general direction, trying to see if she'd found anyone willing to carry and release the niffler for her yet. He was not letting her win the competition. If Jordanna was taken, he'd work on his own.\n\n

16 Geoffrey Layne I'd be happy to get some real gold... 72 Geoffrey Layne 0 5

Jordanna Howard

December 23, 2006 4:42 PM

Well, I wouldn't be happy sharing by Jordanna Howard

Jordanna looked up and pulled the hair out of her face, so that she could actually see the person who was addressing her. Not bad, but, considering her exceptionally low standards for COMC workhorse, that wasn't saying very much.

"Good morning," she replied, "And yes, I'm in need of a partner. I suppose, you'll do."

If she was supposed to know his name that was too bad, because currently her mind was focusing on finding a spell to save her poor feet. The girl was aware that he definitely was not in her house or year. By process of elimination, that made him a third year in either Teppenpaw or Aladren. The boy certainly was no Pecari- as Pecaris rarely showed any signs of even knowing what manners were. The other boy didn't introduce himself with his name, which probably meant it wasn't worth knowing. A mixed blood or unimportant pureblood family, perhaps? Once again, Jordanna wouldn't know, as her mind was currently working on other endeavors.

But she would let him be her partner. He had decent manners, knew who she was, and seemed to have no problem with handling the stupid niffler; all of which were good in her book.

Back to her feet. She couldn't conjure anything, as those were spells best left to sixth and seventh years. An "Impervius"? It might work, although it was really used to make things water-proof. An Imperturable Charm? Those could be very tricky, although she told herself sh could handle them. Jordanna was pretty sure they were used for a barrier against eavesdroppers, but they could be physical barriers too. Right? Was there a way she could cast an Imperturable Charm on just her feet, and not her whole person?

"What do you know about Imperturable Charms?" she asked the third year boy, hoping he would know something about them, or any solution to keep her feet dirt-free.

\n\n

0 Jordanna Howard Well, I wouldn't be happy sharing 65 Jordanna Howard 0 5

Geoffrey Layne

December 25, 2006 8:27 PM

I doubted you would, somehow. by Geoffrey Layne

"Glad to hear it," Geoffrey said blandly upon hearing that he'd do. "You're about all there was left." He and Anne had had enough spats, both real and put-on, for him to figure out that insulting social superiors was fun, but it turned out that it was even better when said superior was above him both in technicality and reality...even if she probably lacked the mental capacity to realize that he was insulting her. "Seek, Nif," he instructed the niffler, releasing it in the direction of a randomly selected clump of bushes.

There was, or so things he'd read claimed, order in what seemed random, but Geoffrey had never managed to find it. It didn't matter; win or lose, he had a virtually work-free lesson, unless one counted having to deal with Jordanna Howard a chore by itself. Geoffrey didn't, so long as she kept her rich mouth shut. Rich girls, if those in his year were anything to go by, were best used as ornaments, since they became annoying, boring, or impossible within seconds of starting to talk.

Of course, they all shared between fifteen and twenty-five percent of their genes with Anne, depending on how much was taken away for their fathers and her mother only being half-siblings. Annoyingness was inevitable, and impossibility very likely. As for boring, he'd finally decided that Anne, as the eldest, had gotten the best of that family's over-bred genes, Blondie (he doubted Gwen would appreciate the nickname, but he had issues with thinking of Anne as Gwen Carey's cousin) had gotten what was left of the interesting ones, and everyone else had gotten leftovers.

He frowned, a question springing to mind. There was a stereotype of pureblooded girls as idiots, neurotics, or wall ornaments, but his sisters weren't like that, and neither was Aunt Melissa. His mother could be explained away as foreign, as could the girls to a lesser extent, but Liss had been born in North Carolina or something. He couldn't imagine her simpering at anyone, or picture his Uncle Harmon marrying her if she had. As for Lena...Helena could wear pink without looking airheaded in the slightest and give him a run for his money in a debate. Even Anne, though she did have her bad moments, was neither stupid nor pretending to be, and anyone who expected her to dissolve into tears or look pretty would probably receive a rude surprise.

But then...Anne was old money through her mother. Her father had come up from nothing and a little less. Melissa was an Auror, which no self-respecting daughter of a good family would stoop to if forced to support herself. His sisters, like himself, had good connections on the other side of the Atlantic, but here, they were the next thing to nonentities, and it was at least half vanity that kept him from saying that they were. It was the rich girls who had the reputation for brainlessness...

"What do you know about Inperturbable Charms?"

Jordanna's voice broke in on the increasingly uncomfortable line of logic and offered him the chance to disprove the theory that ran counter to everything he'd ever been taught before he could even finish forming it. He was enough of a conventionalist to have assumed, based on rumors and the looks of her, that Jordanna would be useless for conversation of the variety he liked, but for once he didn't think he'd mind being proven wrong. Not much, anyway.

"It derives from the Latin," he said, not having a clue as to whether or not this was the truth but having a good deal of experience in making it sound like he knew what he was talking about. "Undisturbed, you see, blocked off. The charm creates an invisible, sound-proof physical barrier around the outside whatever it's cast on, usually a room." He forbore to add that characters miscasting or failing to cast them caused most of the problems on his mother's soap, deciding that the information wasn't relevant to the question. \n\n

16 Geoffrey Layne I doubted you would, somehow. 72 Geoffrey Layne 0 5

Lexi Stafford

December 26, 2006 1:27 PM

It's fluffy! by Lexi Stafford

Care of Magical Creatures may have been Lexi Stafford’s favorite class, and she generally put more effort into it than a lot of her other classes, but that didn’t always mean a great deal. Yes, her father and grandfather at least wanted her to be a healer (she fluctuated on that point), and that meant that she should at least try to get her work done and arrive on time to all her classes, but somehow that never worked out.

Like today, for instance. Her bag had broken on the way from the last class, so she had spent a good 10 minutes trying to gather everything up, fix the bag, and then sprint outside to where the class was held, yet still realized when she arrived that she was a good few minutes behind everyone else. She shot Professor K. an apologetic glance that she wasn’t even sure the professor noticed, and took a seat near the back.

At the instruction to take off whatever jewelry they were wearing, she exchanged slightly confused looks with a few of the students sitting around her, but any confusion vanished when the professor brought out the niffler. Lexi straightened, staring at the animal with great interest. Nifflers had always been one of her favorite animals, even though she’d never gotten to actually get close to one, because her paternal grandmother had dubbed her a human niffler when she was five and had nearly destroyed an entire room by trying to retrieve a soccer ball that had been placed on a high shelf until “it was a better time for it.”

She half-listened to the rest of the introduction, but she remained focused on the fluffy creature. As soon as the students were released, she walked towards the front, trying to beat the rest of the crowd, and pulled out a niffler. He (she assumed it was a male) snarled at first, probably because of the multitude of teenagers reaching into the crate he had been in, but settled down and made itself comfortable in her arms as she began to pet it.

Searching the crowd for someone partner-less and niffler-less, Lexi finally spotted one, and made her way over. “Hey, do you want to work together?” she asked amiably, still scratching the niffler’s ears. For once, she actually didn’t care about the competition more than the class, even though she still wanted to win. She was already making plans to try and convince her father that she should be allowed to have a niffler of her own, even though it would probably have to live outdoors on her grandfather’s estate in England.
\n\n

0 Lexi Stafford It's fluffy! 0 Lexi Stafford 0 5

Adam B.

December 29, 2006 10:53 PM

I'm not always too witty with titles either. by Adam B.

"It's weird," Adam replied. "My dad is the only one in my family who goes by a nickname, yet his name is shorter than my mom's or two of my sisters. Everyone else goes by their full name. But, my brother and two other sisters have short names too."

His face flooded with color when Allie smiled at him. Apparently, she didn't think there was anything wrong with him having a puffskin. "Yea, I really like them." Adam replied. Wow, he'd finally met someone he had something in common with, who also seemed nice."I heard they got to keep theirs. I mean, I already have Peanut, but I don't know. I just think I'd have enjoyed getting another one since I like her so much. You know what I mean?" He felt slightly moronic again. Nothing ever sounded good when it came out of his mouth. Adam hoped Allie wouldn't start thinking he was dumb. Well, he probably was and he sure didn't have any conversation skills, but he didn't want for people to think he was. Besides, Allie seemed so nice. "And if I can't screw it up, nobody can." He blurted out. Adam had meant to make her feel a bit better really -not that she seemed depressed- but now he was wondering if he should regret that remark. After all, now Allie probably thought he was incompetant, which would probably make her wish he wasn't her partner.

"That sounds like a plan." Adam replied. "I don't know much about them either, but you really don't know what you're going to be doing so how do you know what to read up on?" He didn't mention that he sometimes did read stuff before hand. Adam liked to read,he needed to read. It was the only escape he truly had from reality, which he felt wasn't very good.

"It's okay," he assured Allie, as the girl began petting the Niffler and apologized.He wasn't sure why she was apologizing. She wasn't doing anything wrong. If anybody was doing something wrong, it was probably Adam, though he couldn't figure out what. He tentatively reached out to pet the creature on the head. It licked his hand and he smiled. At least animals seemed to like him, for some strange reason, even if people didn't. Perhaps he should go see if he could go help with Professor Deck's cat again. \n\n

11 Adam B. I'm not always too witty with titles either. 78 Adam B. 0 5

Anne Wright

January 01, 2007 12:17 AM

I'll agree with you. by Anne Wright

Once she was sure he was otherwise occupied with Jordanna, Anne stopped where she was in her walk forward and shot Geoffrey a wary, puzzled look. Miss Peralta was one thing, but the way he'd been looking at her was another. So was him being stupid enough to try working with Jordanna Howard, but that could be nothing but Geoffrey being Geoffrey. Looking away in case someone thought she was staring, she touched her face wonderingly. She hadn't thought she looked that much different, but Geoff had made it pretty clear he disagreed. She'd have to remember to save the paints for special occasions from here on out.

The idea that nothing about her but a few details of her appearance had changed was reinforced by her instinctive reluctance to go anywhere near the crate. She didn't wear jewelry often, and hadn't even had any to take off when told to do so, but she was far from eager to get any closer than she had to to something that could, if Geoff wasn't exaggerating again, almost take someone's finger off. Beating Geoffrey out in the competition was all well and good, but if it came down to touching the niffler herself or losing because she waited on someone else to do so, she'd lose cheerfully.

Deliverance came in the form of a redhead she thought was in her year. A niffler had already been retrieved, which meant the other girl didn't share her reluctance to work with animals, and the question about whether or not Anne wanted to work together suggested that she was also partnerless. She looked vaguely familiar, but it was dismissed as classes. Their year wasn't very large; even if she hadn't spoken to or worked with someone in four years, she had seen him or her enough to at least recognize the face. "Sure," she said, trying to sound at least moderately enthusiastic. "I've got a side-competition running with my friend over who can come closer to winning if neither of us does. I'm Anne Wright, Aladren."

The best way to deal with things was to just jump in and deal with them. Putting out a hand, she gave the petted the niffler's head gingerly and pulled back a lot faster than she'd went in. It hadn't bitten her, but she hadn't seen any sense in prolonging the contact to provide it with more chances to prove its goodwill. It hadn't been very brave of her, but there was a gap between 'not brave' and 'cowardly' and she would settle for staying in it.

Looking at her partner again, she realized the source of that nagging familiarity. "You're Ben Stafford's sister," she said. "Lexi, right?" She didn't mention the Teppenpaw's Quidditch record. Anne saw no problem with being obsessed, but the point had, eventually, been gotten across to her that other people didn't necessarily see things the same way.

Quidditch was, however, a hefty portion of why she gave a semblance of a care about what Lexi thought of her. She had been as impressed as the next person by Lexi's performance in the final against Pecari the previous year, and Lexi was close kin to one of Anne's three team members who had been with her from day one. She'd prefer to be on good terms, or at least ones of mutual respect, than bad ones, but her skittishness about the niffler did little to help her image. Confessing her issues with the Animal Kingdom was an option, but not one she was willing to follow through on unless things started looking really bad. "You got anything in mind for the reward yet?"\n\n

16 Anne Wright I'll agree with you. 59 Anne Wright 0 5

Allie

January 01, 2007 10:49 PM

They're one of the hardest parts of roleplaying. by Allie

"Wow," Allie said, blinking at the description of Adam's family. "You have a lot of siblings." And how was that for obvious? "I've only got two - a twin sister and a little brother, Lila and Alban. I'm the eldest." She only held that honor by three and a half minutes, but her father insisted that it made a difference, and it wasn't Allie's place to argue with him. "Two of my cousins live with us, too, though, and the whole family's in and out all the time."

If one could say nothing else of her family, one could say that they were a close-knit group. Of Allie's grandfather's eighteen descendants, eight lived under one roof with his widow, and two of the remaining ten were dead. Aunt Natalie and her seven Whitefields were among the most common in-and-outers, and Alban I's sisters weren't infrequent visitors, especially old-maids Cecilia and Paulina. The more distant lines weren't quite as close to their cousins, but they did see them more than just at the family reunions. Allie had never thought about liking or not liking it; it was just the way things were.

"I think I do," she said when Adam talked about how it would have been nice to get another puffskein. "And it would be like a sister or brother for Nana and Peanut. I always wonder if they get lonely while we're in classes or at parties or whatever." Allie didn't always trust her own logic, but it made sense. If Nana could be happy, then it stood to reason that she could feel other things, too.

Adam's abrupt interjection drew her attention sharply back to him. "That's what I always say," she said. "Daddy says it's not good to, though. He says everyone's good at something." She smiled at him, then, shrugging in a what-can-you-do fashion. "I can draw a little, but that's about it. I'm not very good at magic." Or any of her other classes here, but she figured she'd been comforting enough without bringing up her sad inability to produce a decent potion.

Allie thought the question about the material was rhetorical, but it was best not to be too sure. The best efforts of her mother and her etiquette tutor aside, she had never fully gotten the intricacies of speech and conversation down pat. "I don't know. I'm not sure Lila does, either. It was just the right thing to say, I think." She shouldn't have said that. She knew she shouldn't have said that. Even if it was, in all probability, true.

"Mama says that a lady shouldn't get excited like that," she explained despite what she decided to read as Adam's disownment of any offense. "I always forget. I'm bad about forgetting things." Tucking her dark hair back behind her ears, she began counting the bits of fool's metal the niffler had collected, not bothering to calculate what the values would have been if they'd been real. If she'd understood the professor, they were being judged based on how many coins their niffler found, not what they were worth. \n\n

16 Allie They're one of the hardest parts of roleplaying. 76 Allie 0 5

Lexi

January 03, 2007 11:49 AM

I'd be concerned if you didn't by Lexi

Lexi nodded as Anne introduced herself. She knew who the other girl was, of course, since it was just common sense to be able to recognize the quidditch captains if one played or was a big fan of the sport here at Sonora, but she hadn't ever really talked to the Aladren before. She supposed Anne didn't know who she was, though, not all that shocking, considering she wasn't the most social of people. Still, it was a bit of a surprise, considering that she'd assumed she'd gotten to be at least a little well-known after the quidditch final last year. And, of course, there was always Ben.

About to introduce herself as Anne got aquainted with their niffler, she was beaten to it by the other fourth year apparently realizing who she was. "Yeah, that's me," she said with a smile and a shrug. This was actually the first time she could remember being refered to as Ben's sister. It wasn't that it was a problem, really, it was just a bit strange. She'd been here four years, and yet never really had to deal with being her twin's twin. She wondered somewhat randomly whether Ben ever had to deal with being Lexi's brother. Somehow, being the older one, she doubted he'd appreciate the association in that way. "And I hadn't really considered the idea of the prize yet. I was more focused on this thing," she stroked the niffler, and laughed. "If you can't tell, I'm a big animal person. You have anything in mind?"

She wasn't quite sure what to do now. Obviously, they were going to be using their niffler to find the fake gold, but that seemed to be the extent of their instructions. Most of the other groups seemed to be heading towards the gardens, but a lot of those just seemed to be allowing their niffler to go off and then waiting for the creature to come back. That seemed rather dumb, at least to her. If one did that, then one had to wait twice as long in order to get anything. And, of course, there was always the possibility of losing the gold the niffler had gotten before it even got into one's hands.

Heading towards the entrance to the gardens, she bent down to release her niffler, then looked up, having momentarily forgotten that this was a partnership. Once she was sure that Anne had followed her, she straightened up partially, still keeping a hand on the animal to keep it from running off, and said, half-asking, half telling, "I think it would work best if we just kept up with our niffler while he's searching, since that way we know exactly what he finds, and can collect it there. And if we let him go the way he wants, theoretically he'll know where he's going, and where the gold is, so we won't get led on a wild goose chase. What do you think?"

Perhaps she sounded slightly bossy, but that was just the way she was. Frankly, she thought her idea was the best of any of the options, so she didn't see any problem with starting it immediately. Still, Anne was a figure deserving of at least some respect, as a captain, and it wouldn't do to completely ignore her ideas. So she waited, still holding on, but ready to release the instant Anne agreed with her, assuming the other girl did. \n\n

0 Lexi I'd be concerned if you didn't 0 Lexi 0 5

Guenther Heindrich

January 03, 2007 2:02 PM

I won't be happy about that one. by Guenther Heindrich

Guenther nodded in agreement and started to walk towards the spot that she had pointed at. "So..." he started.

Conversations with girls were always awkward for him. He never understood those boys that had a new girlfriend every week. How did they get that many girlfriends? How did they talk to girls? Now he was putting himself out on a limb to just be a partner with a girl besides Ginger and Spike. He had so much trouble talking to Ginger and Spike. How was he supposed to talk to this girl? \n\n

0 Guenther Heindrich I won't be happy about that one. 0 Guenther Heindrich 0 5

Anne

January 07, 2007 6:59 PM

Wouldn't want that. by Anne

So far, things were going good. She had gotten a partner, gotten a partner who claimed to like animals, and gotten that partner’s name right. Anne wondered cynically when the other shoe would drop. “I haven’t really thought of anything, either,” she said, looking on as Lexi petted the niffler. “The only thing I can come up with off the top of my head is the Quidditch Cup, and I don’t think Kijewski’s authorized to give anyone that.” She grinned at her partner, hoping she hadn’t just dropped the other shoe herself. “Besides, we’re on opposing teams. It would cause a conflict of interests.”

Not that the Teppenpaws seemed to need any help winning anything, these days. Anne still hadn’t figured out how Aladren had beaten them two years earlier; the difference of one Chaser surely couldn’t matter that much. She would insist that Aladren had the best team in the school until they nailed shut her coffin, but the cold, hard facts were that Teppenpaw had beaten Pecari, which had beaten Crotalus and Aladren. Quidditch, she thought, was a great way of disproving House stereotypes.

She followed Lexi, feeling a little amused but half-sure she should be offended, when the other fourth year took off towards the Gardens. No one had ever said she had a monopoly on forwardness or difficulty with the whole working-together thing, though she wouldn’t have expected it from a Teppenpaw. Off the Pitch, at least, they were supposed to be the cooperative types. She listened to the other girl’s plan and nodded.

“That makes sense,” she said. “Let’s go for it.” She could go along with a plan thought up by someone else, so long as it was logical, and the other girl's idea seemed reasonable enough to her. Truth was, Lexi had sounded almost like an Aladren. Merlin forbid, she thought. Anne thought she could get along with this girl here and now, but on a Quidditch team...Well, strong personalities had a long history of not mixing in leader-follower relationships. \n\n

16 Anne Wouldn't want that. 59 Anne 0 5

Lexi

January 11, 2007 11:17 AM

Merlin forbid by Lexi

For a moment, Lexi didn't realize Anne was joking about asking for the quidditch cup (at least, she assumed a few seconds later that the Aladren was joking), and seriously considered the idea. It had some merit, in a twisted sort of way. Then she saw the other girl's grin. "I see what you mean about the conflict of interest," she replied, trying to keep a straight face. "Although I'm sure some kind of shared custody plan could be worked out. You know, you can have alternate weekends, and major holidays, or something." Losing the ability to keep her face and voice serious, she returned the grin.

Releasing her hold on the niffler once she'd gotten her affirmative from Anne, Lexi straightened fully, and then followed the furry creature as he took off at what she supposed was a run for him, though no more than a brisk walk for her. She tried to stay by her partner, both for formality's sake and because she was beginning to genuinely like the other girl, at least as much as their ten minute aquaintance would allow. Naturally, as a Teppenpaw, Lexi got along with most people (she may not have fit some of the house steriotypes, but that was one that was difficult to get past), and she felt a great deal of respect for the girl, so it wasn't that much of a surprise.

It took her a few minutes to think of some topic of conversation to pass the time, though. Quidditch had already been discussed, and Lexi doubted that either of them would be willing to talk about team stuff, considering they were opponents. The only common aquaintance she could think of was Ben, and that was a really lame thing to talk about. Teachers and opinions of classes fell into the same catagory of lameness that siblings did.

"So, what does the Aladren quidditch captain do outside of playing quidditch?" Lexi asked once she'd decided she didn't like the silence, and might as well try and have a decent conversation. "And studying, I suppose, since you're an Aladren, and that's what you lot just seem to do. No offense, of course," she added quickly with a look at Anne, realizing that her last sentence might sound slightly offensive. It was true, though. She couldn't think of anything Ben did outside those two activities.

Or you, either, a snide voice in her head interjected. She hushed it, trying not to consider the truth of the statement (although she didn't study if she could help it, and did do things like threaten random Crotali, even if that was just once, and, when she was at home, still worked with with her dad or grandfather on healing wounded animals she found). Her snider self wasn't given a chance to retort, though, since that was the time the niffler started to dig, and revealed a handful of gold, giving the two girls a look.

Lexi bent down to pick it up, dominant/competitive self still in place, scratched the creature's head with a murmered "good boy," and stood as the niffler began to search once more. "Do you want to keep it? I don't have anything to hold it in, besides robe pockets, I guess." Foolishly, she'd left her bag back at the clearing, and figured it was only fair to give the other girl a shot to be in charge of something, particularly if her personality was anythinglike Lexi's.
\n\n

0 Lexi Merlin forbid 0 Lexi 0 5

Anne

January 13, 2007 1:30 AM

Yeah, seriously. by Anne

Anne laughed out loud at Lexi's comeback. "That works for me," she said mock-diplomatically. "You can have every other Christmas if I get Easter and New Year's." She tried to imagine the looks on the faces of the other captains and Beaters if someone tried to explain that Finals were off because it was Lexi's weekend with the Cup. She didn't know most of them well enough to make any calls about exact reactions, but the general idea wasn't hard to come up with, and for the ones she did know...She had to stop less than halfway through the image to keep from laughing at the sheer ridiculousness of it.

It probably wasn't good, she thought as they followed the niffler, to find herself prepared to like someone off an enemy team, but it was a moot point. With the exception of Pecari, the teams were all hopelessly interrelated; Quidditch was a family affair as often as not. It wasn't as bad as it had been in her second year, when three members of her team had been siblings to three of the Teppenpaws and Gwen had been her cousin on Crotalus and two of the Duprees had been with Aladren, but there were still enough connections to go around. Ben was still in, there was no evidence of Lexi quitting, Gwen was still on the Crotalus team, and now Lenny was there, too.

Geoff had been having issues with that one, though he, no doubt, thought neither of them had noticed. Anne usually saved what little worrying she did for Helena, the only nice person either of their families had ever really turned out, but this time it was Sonora's other resident Layne who had her, if not exactly anxious, a little concerned. Geoff had some medieval chauvinist notion about how he was morally obligated to "take care" of his sisters until they found nice, boring, harmless pureblooded husbands to take over the job. Hitting big metal balls at Helena did not constitute taking care of her. He was going to have to get over it, because she'd be -

"So, what does the Aladren quidditch captain do outside of playing quidditch?" The question and the immediately following statements brought her back to the here and now, where she'd apparently been ignoring her partner. Oops. She shrugged, trying to think of an answer. Did she do anything else? Days just sort of went by in a flurry of small activities, with the only major things being midterms, finals, and games. She didn't really have any friends outside of Geoff, who was even more of a jerk than she was, Helena, who saw and forgave people their faults, and Gwen, who was...Gwen, and didn't really count.

"None taken, and very little," she said, sounding half-joking. "I lead a boring life off the Pitch. Sometimes I'll skip studying for something to go read some histories in the library - they've got a really good selection - or one of my stash of novels, listen to Geoff Layne butcher Mozart on his violin if I'm really bored. I'm more of a Bach person, myself." She'd always been under the impression that Ben was a pureblood. Unless something very weird was going on, that made Lexi one, too. "Er...Mozart and Bach are really famous dead Muggle music composers," she added, then tried to change the subject. "What does the Teppenpaw Beater do other than knock out Pecaris?"

Anne eyed the fake money the niffler had collected with interest. "Yeah, good niffler," she said. "I don't figure it could have carried much of this back at one go, and then someone else's niffler might have come along and gotten it all. This was a good idea, Lexi." She could almost hear Geoff making some comment about rain in the Sahara, but ignored it. He was worse about thinking he knew best than she was. "Sure," she said when asked if she'd hang on to the gold. She hated feeling useless in groups, which, unless the assignment didn't involve contact with the specimens or she was working with Zoey's brother, was usually the case in this class. Her bag had enough books in it to make her robe pockets more practical until they filled up. \n\n

16 Anne Yeah, seriously. 59 Anne 0 5

Adam B.

January 13, 2007 6:36 AM

I know. by Adam B.

"Uh, yea. I do. I'm the second eldest." Adam replied awkwardly. He really didn't know what else to say. "My cousin moved in with us last summer too. He just graduated from Salem." He didn't really want to expand on why Marshall was staying them. There were some things one just didn't talk about and his cousin's family life was one of them. Adam didn't even know exactly what went on at Aunt Rachel's but he knew Marshall and his dad didn't get on and that Uncle Liam was terrible to both Adam's cousin and aunt. "We don't see the others as much." And for that I am grateful, he added silently. The fact that his mother's relatives weren't very nice to him, wasn't something he felt comfortable talking about to someone he'd just met.

"Yea..I mean, do you think they like, spend time with the other pets that people have in our houses? Or are roommates' pets? I don't think my roommate has one." Adam never talked to his roommate much. He was, of course, certain that the other boy didn't like him even though Adam at least realized Geoffrey wasn't going to kill him in his sleep.

His eyes lit up. Adam had an idea. He'd have to run it by Allie though. "Maybe if we win, we can ask Professor K.," he had a difficult time pronouncing her name and didn't want to ever sound stupid by saying it wrong in front of anyone. "if we can have some of the left over puffskeins." Adam looked at the ground, not wanting to meet Allie's gaze in case she didn't like the idea. He'd feel so bad if she didn't. He'd want to run away and hide and probably never be able to face Allie again.

Adam looked up at her again, still blushing furiously. "Y-you feel that way too?" He asked. It had never occurred to him that other people felt inadequate. He was usually around people who were pretty sure of themselves for the most part. Plus, Adam always felt himself that there was no way anyone could be as incompetant and worthless as he was. "I don't know what I'm good at." He looked down at the ground again. He was pretty decent in most of his classes, but somehow he still felt inferior overall. It was just that Adam felt himself constantly being looked at critically, that people were judging his every move.

"I feel like my sister is usually the one who knows just what to say too." He told her. He'd never thought of Lila as being the kind comforting helpful type, like Kaylie was, from the little he knew about her, but maybe she was different with her twin. That made sense. They were family, twins even.

"That's okay too." Adam responded. "I mean that you can't remember things. I mean, uh.." He trailed off. He really didn't know how to finish that sentence. Oh, dear Merlin was he ever socially inept! He just didn't want her to feel bad. Adam hated for anyone to feel like that, the way he often did. Nobody should ever have to be that miserable. He also wasn't sure what to say about what Allie's mother said. Her family must be different from his more laidback one, although he could imagine one of his aunt Dorthea saying that. She was mean and proper as could be. "And um, I don't mind if you are enthusiastic. It's really okay. My sisters tend to be enthusiastic." \n\n

11 Adam B. I know. 78 Adam B. 0 5

Allie

January 15, 2007 11:38 AM

I've lost the thread of title conversation again. by Allie

As the topic of family was nearing the point of exhaustion, Allie just nodded at Adam's analysis of his. The structure of internal St. Martin family life made it hard to grasp the concept, but the distance between them and her mother's family made it a little easier to see. Sarah St. Martin was not proud of her roots, and for good reason; her father had to work, her mother played at being a lady, and her sister was off her rocker. The only Gregory besides Sarah to do well was Uncle Robert, who'd gotten money and social status by marrying Aunt Paige.

She considered the question about pets. "I don't know. They might, but I don't know if cats and owls and such might try to eat them. I don't think either of my roommates have any pets, either, but I don't know them very well." She didn't have anything against the other girls - Pepper seemed nice, and Briony being quiet was no reason to assume she wouldn't be - but they had never talked very much other than general pleasantries. She wasn't sure if she minded that or not.

Allie wasn't sure what Professor Kijewski - not to mention her mother - would say about Adam's idea of a reward, but since she thought them highly unlikely to win anyway, it would do for an idea. "That might be nice," she said, then giggled. "We'd have to put ribbons around one or the other, though, to tell them apart. That's what Mama used to do when Lila and I were little, especially when Grandfather's sisters would visit. Only Cornelia and Cecilia could ever keep us straight once we were introduced, and I think that was because they're twins, too." And that sentance had been a grammatical masterpiece...

The next question took a moment of deliberation before she answered it. "Sometimes," she said finally. "There has to be something you're good at. Maybe you just haven't found it yet." It was the same sad old song her father sang to her, sometimes, but it felt a lot better to say it than to hear it. She was glad of a change of subject. "Your sister...is she the Teppenpaw prefect? She looks nice." She didn't know Kaylie Brockert at all - she was afraid enough of the fourth years without associating with anyone any older - but she had seen the fifth year around and heard things about her, and it didn't make sense to pick mean people as prefects.

She felt herself turning red as Adam kept saying that various things were okay. She hadn't meant to sound...well, like she wanted him to start up with that. It felt odd. "Um...thanks." Not the proper form. She inwardly kicked herself. She was supposed to use the proper forms when talking to people outside the family. She looked towards the Gardens, where nifflers were shooting in and out with their findings. "Er - I think the niffler's coming back again." \n\n

16 Allie I've lost the thread of title conversation again. 76 Allie 0 5

Professor K

January 21, 2007 10:00 PM

The Winners Revealed. by Professor K

Kiva had stood on the sidelines watching the students as they went around searching for treasure with their nifflers. Nifflers were one of Kiva's favorite creatures. They were soft, adorable, and useful for many things. Too bad they were terrible house pets.

It was getting closer to the end of the lesson and Kiva still needed to announce the winners of the competition. Placing her wand to her throat and a whispered spell to amplify her voice, Kiva called the attention of her students, "Alright everyone, times coming to and end, place grab your nifflers and place them back into the pen. Once you do that, pleace gather around me for the announcing of the winners."

She waited patiently for the students to do what they were told. Once she knew everyone was back to standing in front of her, she smiled warmly at them. "Great work. Team work is essential to surviving in the real world. Now, I'm impressed by how much was found and I know there's still a bit more, but that's fine. I'd like to say that the group that found the most gold was Allie St. Martin and Adam Brockert. If you two would stay behind for a few minutes, that would be great. Everyone else, you're dismissed. Have a wonderful rest of the day." Kiva said, waving off the rest of the students and waiting for Allie and Adam to approach her.

"Okay you two, what have you decided for your prize?" \n\n

0 Professor K The Winners Revealed. 0 Professor K 0 5

DH Kiva Kijewski

Lesson 1, Years 3-4 by DH Kiva Kijewski

Allie St. Martin

In search of a partner. by Allie St. Martin

Adam Brockert

Um, I'll work with you.. by Adam Brockert

Allie

Thankee, sir. by Allie

Dalila Bastet

If I were a pirate, I'd so want one... by Dalila Bastet

Bella Santoro

Oh the joys of fuzzy black things by Bella Santoro

Saul Pierce

If I were a Pirate, I'd have a sword and go ARRR! by Saul Pierce

Guenther Heindrich

Nifflers? My sisters are more destructive. by Guenther Heindrich

Dalila

Then you'd make a good pirate. by Dalila

Saul Pierce

*brandishes sword* ARRR! by Saul Pierce

Dalila

*brandishes parrot* squawk? by Dalila

Saul Pierce

Polly got the treasure by Saul Pierce

Adam B.

You're welcome, mam by Adam B.

Briony O'Leary

I wish I had sisters. by Briony O'Leary

Devian Dupree

Re: Oh the joys of fuzzy black things by Devian Dupree

Bella

At least they're useful by Bella

Guenther Heindrich

6 year old triplets are a hassle! by Guenther Heindrich

Jordanna Howard

I'm happy with the <i> real </i> gold I already have, thank by Jordanna Howard

Devian

Indeed by Devian

Bella

Right, well, anywho... by Bella

Briony

Wait until they're teens by Briony

Devian

Subject lines are not my strong point by Devian

Bella

They come and go with me by Bella

Allie

Let's pretend I put something witty here. by Allie

Geoffrey Layne

I'd be happy to <i>get</i> some real gold... by Geoffrey Layne

Jordanna Howard

Well, I wouldn't be happy sharing by Jordanna Howard

Geoffrey Layne

I doubted you would, somehow. by Geoffrey Layne

Lexi Stafford

It's <i>fluffy</i>! by Lexi Stafford

Adam B.

I'm not always too witty with titles either. by Adam B.

Anne Wright

I'll agree with you. by Anne Wright

Allie

They're one of the hardest parts of roleplaying. by Allie

Lexi

I'd be concerned if you didn't by Lexi

Guenther Heindrich

I won't be happy about that one. by Guenther Heindrich

Anne

Wouldn't want that. by Anne

Lexi

Merlin forbid by Lexi

Anne

Yeah, seriously. by Anne

Adam B.

I know. by Adam B.

Allie

I've lost the thread of title conversation again. by Allie

Professor K

The Winners Revealed. by Professor K

brandishes sword ARRR! by Saul Pierce

brandishes parrot squawk? by Dalila