Professor Olivers
August 03, 2013 1:19 AM
What will you reveal...? [I & II years] by Professor Olivers
This winter break was the beginning of Florence's full recovery after her husband had passed away four years ago. Well, as full of a recovery as she could ever muster. She had spent Christmas with her brother and his family and spent the New Year with her fellow thespians. It reminded her of the years before she had married, back when she had been carefree and the theatre had been her life. Now she was a professor and teaching was her life, but she still looked back on those days fondly. Now she was looking forward to overseeing the development of the Drama Club. Though her lifestyle had changed drastically from seventeen years ago, the theatre was still close to her heart.It was only a week since her students had returned from the break and she was sure she could feel the post-holiday mood lingering. It was always difficult to break through that the first couple of weeks, but Florence herself was feeling a little more lighthearted today. She supposed it had something to do with getting a letter from her grandniece at breakfast and having no extra grading to do.
The door closed at eight o'clock sharp and she stood at her desk with a smile. "Good morning everyone and happy Monday." The winter sun was shining through the windows today and she was grateful. Hopefully the extra light would wake her especially sleepy students up. "Today we're going to learn how to turn invisible ink visible. There is a quill on your desk already filled with invisible ink and you may use it to take your notes, if you wish." She smiled. It would make messy notes, but if her students preferred, she didn't mind it. "The Revealing Charm reveals invisible ink and basic concealing charms. Depending on a person's skill, this charm could even make other invisible things reveal themselves. However, we are only going to be working on revealing invisible ink for today.
"The incantation for this charm is Aparecium. You simply tap the parchment three times and the words should appear. However, you must stay focused on the incantation and pronounce the spell correctly. It is pronounced AH-par-EH-see-um." She waved her hand and the chalk wrote the incantation on the blackboard and the pronunciation underneath. Pronunciation was always the first step in the beginner classes. Florence didn't think her second-years would have too much trouble with this one, but the first-years might.
"On a scrap of paper I want you to write a message with the quill provided, something you wouldn't be embarrassed to have your professor read. You will exchange your parchment with your neighbor then practice the charm on your neighbor's invisible message until you can clearly read what your partner wrote. Then I want you and your partner to come up to my desk and show me the parchment and I will mark you on how clear the ink is. Don't forget the essay on the Color-Changing Charm I assigned last week. It's due this Friday. Once you have completed the spell, you may work on your essay quietly." She gave them all a serious look. "And I expect you all to be above cheating." It didn't matter if they did cheat. She would know by the charm she had placed on the quills carrying the invisible ink on their desk. "You may begin."
OOC: Lengthy, creative, and realistic posts will earn you more points!
Subthreads: Oh, Merlin! by Emrys Lucan, Aladren with Ji-Eun Park, Pecari
I'm homesick... by Jude Butler, Pecari with Adam Spencer, Pecari, Jude
Revealing a secret message. by Emery Kijewski-Jareau, Aladren with Dimitri Porter. Teppenpaw, Ava Fletcher, Aladren
Not much, I suppose. by Leo Princeton, Crotalus with Irina Volkov, Aladren, Leo Princeton
Only the best partner will do. by Eleanor Vandenberg - Crotalus with Tristan Spaulding, Crotalus, Nellie Vandenberg
Attitudes and opinions, perhaps by Francesca Wolseithcrafte, Aladren with Malcolm Carey, Pecari
Back to the grindthtone by Analea Thornton, Aladren with Chloe Jareau, Pecari, Analea , Chloe Jareau
I am my own special creation by Charlie B-F-R, Teppenpaw with Darina Porter, Tepp, Rina
Not much, I'm afraid. by Julian Umland, Teppenpaw with Willow Collins,Teppenpaw
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Professor Olivers
What will you reveal...? [I & II years]
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Professor Olivers
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Jude Butler, Pecari
August 05, 2013 7:20 PM
I'm homesick... by Jude Butler, Pecari
There was no doubt in the twelve year old’s mind. Jude was homesick. There was something about her family that made her feel comfortable and together, only one person here did that, Angel. She wasn’t in classes with the older boy, she didn’t even have the Challenges to look forward to in order to be with him. He hadn’t really spoken to her the whole first half, but then again she’d barely seen him so it was almost impossible to talk to someone she hadn’t seen.Jude still went to her classes, worked mostly by herself, even though she wanted to make friends and everything. Dane and Seanan had both taken her aside before coming back and told her that they expected at least one new friend from her this year. They’d grown tired of hearing that she wanted to come home and as much as they love her, they told her they wanted her to be happy both at home and at school and it was up to her to help herself.
She’d made up her mind that she would talk to other people, other than Angel that was, and she would do as they asked. What better place to start that then in classes? Jude walked into Charms Class, determined to sit next to someone she’d never spoken to and hopefully make a friend. The Professor welcomed them and told them that they were going to be turning invisible ink visible and Jude smiled. Nice! Now I can have some fun with the boys when they write messages to each other… she thought with a smile as she picked up the quill that their professor had been speaking about and took her notes with it.
Taking her notes for the incantation in the regular ink, however, just in case, she smiled as she finished writing down the notes and looked up at her teacher when she said that they needed to use a bit of scrap paper to write a message down that their neighbor would read as well as her. She thought, wondering what she could write on her paper. That’s it! she thought and she wrote, WE SHOULD GET TO KNOW EACHOTHER AND BE FRIENDS! down on her bit of paper once they were told they could begin.
“Are you ready to switch papers?” she asked her neighbor, only then noticing who it was.
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Jude Butler, Pecari
I'm homesick...
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Jude Butler, Pecari
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Adam Spencer, Pecari
August 09, 2013 12:35 PM
Let's change that. by Adam Spencer, Pecari
The winter holiday had been everything Adam could have wanted and more. He had been more than happy to see his family again, particularly his younger siblings. The youngest seemed to grow quicker the less he saw of her. Charlotte had been bursting with news to tell everyone after her first term away from home, but she was soft-spoken and continually turned to him to fill in the blanks. He knew she was talkative underneath her shy demeanour, but he had never seen her really break out of her shell even at home. Only when they were alone together did she ever truly speak her mind. It was both a blessing and a curse, having such a shy sister.As comforting as home was, Adam was glad to be back. He liked his house, he liked the courses and he enjoyed learning. He was nervous about his first Quidditch match coming up, but he really couldn’t do anything about that but train. He had made a handful of mates his first year here and half of his second, but he was a naturally social person and wanted to make more. He had tried to make it a habit to sit with someone else every day unless Charlotte was being particularly clingy that hour.
Morning classes were always the most difficult to pay attention in; that and classes after lunch. He was not a morning person at all like Charlotte was, but he had woken up and come to class a bit earlier than usual. He sat down and rubbed his eye, doing his best to keep awake. Professor Olivers was lecturing again and he tried writing a bit to keep awake, but he began to doze a bit. The sunlight was not helping in the slightest. It made him even drowsier. His letters were beginning to blur and he smudged a bit with his hand without noticing. His head drooped, but he quickly raised it once more. Adam tugged on his earlobe, trying to do something inconspicuous to keep awake. He had heard most of the lesson and he stretched his legs down to his toes in his shoes when Olivers dismissed them to work in partners. He began scribbling down his message with the invisible inked quill.
What goes up
“Sorry?” His neighbour had spoken to him and Adam turned his head, only then realising he was sitting next to his house-mate. “Oh, hi Jude,” he said with a smile. He knew of her; they were in the same year and in the same house, but that was the extent. He wasn’t quite sure what to call her, seeing as they were peers yet were hardly on acquaintance terms. His peers had seemed to be slightly less formal here than back home, so he thought he’d be safer going with her first name than her last. “I’m almost ready.”
What goes up and down the stairs without moving?
His riddle was finished and he passed it over to Jude. “All right, here you are.” Now the key was to pronounce the spell correctly on the first try. He was about to try it himself when he thought it would be better manners if he allowed Jude to try first. It wouldn’t do if they both attempted the spell at the same time. What if they knocked elbows or something? His dad had always told him it was ‘witches first’ in most situations. It was only proper during lessons too, wasn’t it? “You can have a go first,” he said with a smile as he gestured at the parchment he had handed to her.
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Adam Spencer, Pecari
Let's change that.
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Adam Spencer, Pecari
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Jude
August 10, 2013 11:31 PM
Really?! That would be great!) by Jude
Jude felt quite conflicted. She wanted home, but she wanted to make her brothers proud of her too. I will make friends… she told herself as she wrote out what she decided to put onto her scrap paper. Sure, she’d spoken to people in classes and whatnot, but she hadn’t really talked to them like she’d spoken to Angel during the Challenges. She enjoyed the time with the older boy and wished it could continue. But he’s older, what does he want to go hanging around someone this much younger than him? she thought to herself.At least in classes I’m around people my own age… she thought, as she finished writing her sentence onto the paper before looking to see who had sat next to her. Jude wondered why she hadn’t even looked to see that before, but she didn’t worry about that. There were bigger fish to fry here. She asked him, realizing that it was Adam, her house and year mate, who had sat next to her, if he was ready to switch. When he’d said hello to her, she smiled meekly and said, “Hey Adam.“ He didn’t really know her just like she didn’t really know him, but that didn’t mean that they wouldn’t be able to. He seemed like a good person to get to know and maybe he was where she should start after all? He answered that he was almost ready and Jude waited patiently for him to finish.
He handed Jude his paper and she gave him hers, feeling sort of nervous with what she’d written on her paper now that it was all over and done with. Adam told her that she could have her go first and she glanced down at her notes to be sure that it was done right for a second before she started, “AH-par-EH-see-um” she said, tapping the parchment three times. She watched carefully at his bit of paper as vowels started to show up on the page. a oe u a o e ai I ou o I? She looked at it curiously and tapped three times again, saying the incantation once more. Maybe I didn’t say it right? she thought as she said it a little bit more forceful. “AH-par-EH-see-um” she said, and more letters showed up too.
What goes up and down the stairs without moving?
“Ooo!! A riddle! I LOVE riddles!” she exclaimed with a huge grin on her face. “I’ll think about the answer if you want to try your turn?” she asked him, happy that Adam had sat next to her and hopeful that maybe they could indeed be friends like her paper said!
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Jude
Really?! That would be great!)
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Jude
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Adam
August 11, 2013 4:24 AM
I was hoping you'd say that. by Adam
Jude did quite well on her attempt. It had only taken her twice and Adam thought that was quite good. He was better at Transfiguration than he was at Charms, meaning he hardly got a spell right on the first try. But he hoped, this being his second year in the beginner's class, to excel a bit faster. Adam didn't know Jude very well and he had found it a bit funny that his current mates were all in different houses. He hadn't paid much attention to the house-mates he lived with and competed alongside. Joining Quidditch would solve a few of those problems, but not all. His hope for a new friend in his house was fuelled by her excitement at the riddle he had written down. "Really?" he asked, a smile spreading on his face. "Me too. All right, I'll have a go."Adam turned to the parchment he had and concentrated on getting the spell right. For simpler spells it usually took him two tries, but today he wanted to do it in one. Adam had practised the spells they'd learnt last term the first few days back at Sonora and he hoped that re-acquaintance with magic would help him a bit more. "AH-par-EH-see-um," he said, being careful to pronounce each syllable, and Jude's ink appeared like a dark stone emerging from a murky river. "Brilliant," he said, grinning. Her parchment was much more excited than his had been, but he refrained from teasing her for it. He didn't know her that well yet.
"Why not?" he said with a smile. "If you did mean me in particular, that is. Have you figured it out yet?" Adam and his sister loved riddles. He wasn't quite sure where the love had sprouted from, but they had loved them ever since either of them could remember. During dinner they would throw out a riddle and, depending on its difficulty, it would take all evening for their parents to figure it out. It was fun, riddles, and it was something he had bonded over with Charlotte. They shared many of the same interests, but it was unfortunate that he made more mates than she did. If she were just a bit more outgoing, she would be immensely popular.
Adam didn't want to worry over his sister again, especially in class. She seemed to be doing fine and if her one mysterious friend decided to contact her this term, then she would have at least one person. He needed to remember to focus on his own life as well. "Once you've got the answer, would you like to go up to Professor Olivers and show her our parchments? These both look like high marks to me."
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Adam
I was hoping you'd say that.
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Adam
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Jude
August 15, 2013 3:14 AM
You were? by Jude
Jude’s love for riddles sparked her energy for the first time in a year and a half, and that Adam had given it to her made him one of her favorite people ever! The grin on her face never faded as Adam took his turn and she thought of the possible answers to his riddle. What goes up and down the stairs without moving? she thought, as Adam mentioned that he liked riddles too. Her smile widened both as he tried his turn and discovering they liked riddles. She hoped it would help her desire to be friends with Adam. He smiled too, and Jude hoped that was a good thing!Adam had managed to get her writing to come out on the first try. “Good job!” she praised his skill and when he said ‘brilliant!’ her already large grin got broader. Her smile widened again when he remarked ‘why not!’ “I did mean you.” she said, even though she hadn’t meant him specifically at the start. Jude certainly meant it now.
He asked if she’d figured it out and she looked at him and said, “Is it the railing?” she asked. “At first that’s what I thought, but it seemed too easy… And that works for me…” she added the last bit as an afterthought.
“I agree, I really do. And I’m looking forward to getting to know you!” she said as she picked up his paper and waited for him to make the next move. She wasn’t sure if he was ready to go up to the professor yet, or if he wanted to talk more, but she was hoping that he’d tell her that she was right about his riddle. Maybe he had more for her? Or maybe she could think of one for him? Either way, she watched him, smile on her face as she waited for him.
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Jude
You were?
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Jude
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Adam
August 19, 2013 5:46 PM
Friends make the world go round. by Adam
Though Adam had enough common sense to know that she hadn’t meant him in particular at the beginning—unless she had—, he appreciated her enthusiasm. Adam wanted to make more friends as well, but he wouldn’t have been half as enthusiastic as Jude. It was refreshing. Though he was not from a family who expected their wizards to hide their every emotion from the world, he naturally acted a bit cooler with strangers and acquaintances. His ‘cool’ image changed completely when he was with his mates and even his parents knew how silly he could be. His relationship with Jude, however, was not quite there yet, though he had high hopes for them by her reaction to the riddle.Her answer made Adam raise his eyebrows. “You know, I don’t think I’ve ever thought of that. The answer is the rug, but maybe the railing would be better. It was one of the easier and shorter riddles I could think of.” He smiled. “Good job at figuring it out so quickly. I look forward to getting to know you too.”
Jude was much more honest than other witches he had met and Adam wasn’t certain how to take it at first. She had to be either a pure-blood from a less renowned family or of another blood. Adam hadn’t yet figured out how to tell a muggle-born from a half-blood since muggle-borns had the capability to perform magic like any other wizard, but then a muggle-born was very different from a Muggle.
Not that any of that mattered with Jude. She was magical; therefore her blood status did not matter as a friend. She looked ready to make her way over to Professor Olivers’s desk so Adam took the initiative to lead the way. “Professor Olivers,” he greeted her before handing over their scraps. Once they had turned their parchments in, Adam went back to his seat. “Now for the essay?” he sighed. “Or we can keep thinking up riddles. Have you any good ones?” Adam hadn’t started his essay yet, but writing on the Colour-Changing Charm couldn’t be that difficult.
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Adam
Friends make the world go round.
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Adam
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Jude
September 04, 2013 3:47 PM
Then let the world turn! by Jude
Jude was glad that Adam had sat next to her. There was something about the boy that woke her up. It wasn’t like he was an older brother or anything like that either, he was actually friend material, who may actually want to be her friend right back!When Adam mentioned the fact that he’d never thought of that as an answer to his riddle, and she shrugged her shoulders, but smiled when he told her the answer was the rug. “Well, I can see that works too… I hadn’t thought of that either…” she said to him, grinning from ear to ear. “Thanks for that. I do love riddles, and I look forward to getting to know you better.” she added to him.
Adam took the initiative to lead the way to Professor Olivers’ desk and Jude followed him happily. She’d finally made a friend (she hoped) that she could write to Dane and Seanan about! The year was turning around, as was her whole school career! They turned in their parchments to the professor, and Jude followed Adam back to their seats. “As fun as it might be to do the essay now, I do have a riddle for you…” she said to him.
She waited to see that he was ready for her before speaking again, and with a grin on her face from ear to ear she said, “What is it that you can keep after giving it to someone else?” she asked. Waiting patiently to see either the look of dawning on his face or a look of confusion, she watched him as she waited to see.
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Jude
Then let the world turn!
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Jude
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Adam
September 10, 2013 11:57 AM
Turn! Turn! Turn! by Adam
Jude loved riddles. Adam thought he’d made good friends in Ginny and Francesca, but Jude was gladly added to that list. Anyone who loved riddles as much as he had to make a lovely friend. After showing Professor Olivers their work, they went back to their seats and as Adam brought out the parchment to begin his essay on, he listened to Jude’s riddle and paused.The words turned in his head. He’d heard this one before, but he had to remember what the answer was. His brows furrowed as they always did when he was thinking hard about something. The answer was completely gone, apparently. Adam had so many riddles in his head that some did end up getting lost along the way.
“Let me figure it out,” he told her, determined. What could one keep after giving it to someone else? It couldn’t be anything physical. A riddle? A joke? Conversations? Sentences? Words? The answer dawned on Adam and he grinned. “My word,” he told her. His father used that expression often and Adam should have guessed that one quicker.
“That was a good one,” he said, glad they had a mutual interest in riddles. “Where do you find good riddles around here?” Most of the riddles Adam knew were not passed on by word of mouth, but books of riddles that Dad and Charlotte gave him every Christmas or birthday.
Replying with a riddle only seemed fit and Adam thought getting started on this essay could wait until they riddled themselves out. “I’ve got another for you: What always works with something in its eye?” This had Mum in stitches after she heard the answer and Charlotte absolutely loved it. Adam thought it was a bit bland himself, but perhaps it pertained more to witches than lads like himself.
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Adam
Turn! Turn! Turn!
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Adam
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