Professor Skies
May 07, 2016 12:56 AM
Beginners - feeling bouncy by Professor Skies
“Good morning,” Selina greeted the beginners class, “As you already know, I’m Deputy Headmistress Skies, however you can all address me as ‘professor,’ and I will be teaching you Transfiguration. Transfiguration is complex magic, and you will find that you do best in this class if you can approach your projects with a degree of patience. Please try not to be disheartened if you don’t achieve much straight away. A lot of what we practise may seem to have little practical use at first - why change one object to another, if the other is close at hand? But can you imagine being able to conjure up what you need out of thin air, or change your appearance at will? These are some of the more complex forms of Transfiguration, but you can’t learn to run before you’ve learnt to walk. The skills you will learn in your early classes will strengthen your magical ability as a whole, and your ability to control your powers. And you never know when you might not have exactly what you need readily to hand, so you may find these types of spell coming in useful more often than you imagine.“Your first task today will be to fill out a Transfiguration table, which is coming round now - there are detailed copies for first years, and blank ones for second years. The table lists all the features of an object, such as function, size, etcetera. When we are Transfiguring, the most important element is to visualise in detail the change that will take place, as well as finding common links between the items. As you become more practised in the process, this is something you will be able to do in your head, but to start with, it helps to think it through on paper.
“Today, you will be making bouncy balls. You have a few different options to choose from. First years, you may take either a smooth, round pebble or an eraser. Second years, you can choose either of these materials, or a more lumpy and uneven pebble,” as she spoke, a box floated from her desk around the room, pausing in front of each student so they could make a selection (although if they took too long, it jiggled somewhat impatiently). “Whilst you work, I would like you to keep notes about your different attempts, including what changes you visualised and what results you saw. For homework, pair up with someone in your year who chose a different starting object to you and compare notes. It’s not a puzzle, and neither of the first year objects is more or less difficult - they each have plus points and minus points.
“The spell for everyone is hevea,” she had considered making them look up the derivation of this for homework as well, as the other task was fairly easy, but she didn’t want to overload them in their first week. “We’ll be looking at different spell origins throughout the term, and anyone who wants to get ahead on this subject should read chapter four of their books,” behind her, the chalk scribbled details of the lesson and the homework in an elegant, sloping hand.
“You may talk quietly amongst yourselves whilst you work, and if you have any difficulties, you can discuss the problem with your neighbours or raise your hand to get my attention. You may begin.”
OOC - Welcome to Transfiguration! Remember, in her first lesson, Hermione Granger was only able to make a matchstick go silvery and a bit pointy. The lesson you’ve got is slightly easier to give you more chance to have a range of different outcomes, but it will still not be a fast or easy process for your character. You are marked on the quality of your writing, not how well your character does, and high marks are given for realism, creativity, length and relevance. Feel free to make up details about the worksheet that has been handed out, and tag me in the subject line if your character is calling my attention, or doing anything risky that a teacher would likely put a stop to. Remember, you are being supervised, and whilst explosions are fun, Selina would step in before a situation became truly dangerous, so please give her the chance to do so if you’re up to anything.
Subthreads: Play ball (tag: Gabe) by Ben "Hippo" Pierce, Pecari with Gabe Valenti [Teppenpaw]
Hope everyone's put away their china. by Joseph Umland, Teppenpaw with Killian Everett - Pecari
Where there's smoke... there's a Spark? by Jozua Sparks, Teppenpaw with Farrah Welsh (Aladren)
Not so bouncy. by Lily Spencer, Pecari with Arianna Valenti [Aladren]
Bounce, little pebble, bounce! [Tag: Juniper] by Finn Scott with Juniper Brockert,Teppenpaw
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Professor Skies
Beginners - feeling bouncy
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Professor Skies
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Lily Spencer, Pecari
May 24, 2016 5:13 PM
Not so bouncy. by Lily Spencer, Pecari
Lily was very much looking forward to life at school. She didn't think her courses were going to be very interesting, but at least she was finally going to learn how to use her magic properly. One of the hardest courses was Transfiguration, according to her oldest brother and sister, and Lily dreaded the class. She sat down near the centre of the room, hoping to get a good view of everything. She smiled at her desk mate, but Professor Skies began her lecture before she could say anything.A Transfiguration table was coming round now and Lily took one for herself and examined it. Filling this out seemed easy enough, but tedious when the differences in objects were rather obvious. She looked over at her partner, wondering if she was the only one who hadn't gone to school prior to Sonora.
The practical bit of the lesson was more interesting and Lily left her Transfiguration table untouched on her desk as she pulled out her wand. It was a beautiful one, she thought, 11 1/2 inches, dragon-heartstring, maple. She was proud of it, now being an owner of a wand, and she couldn't wait to use it properly, not just pretending. Already it felt like an extension of her.
When the pebbles and erasers came around, Lily plucked out an eraser, not completely confident in her abilities as of yet. She knew she'd never been a very good student so if she took the easier route she would be able to pull off an O. She wasn't looking forward to the lectures in class, but this looked like fun.
Instead of filling out the table first, she immediately attempted the spell. She'd read whatever chapters she needed to later tonight or tomorrow... or whenever she felt like it. Lily brandished her wand and said, "Hevea!" with as much enthusiasm as she could muster. The eraser began to steam and she gasped and tried to cool it down by waving it with her hands. The rubber only fell off the table and when Lily tried to pick it up she discovered it was scorching. "Ouch!" She put her fingers in her mouth as if that would cool them, and looked over at her desk mate. She stamped her foot in indignation before sitting back down on her chair and wiping her fingers on her uniform.
"Having better luck than I?" she asked sullenly. "I think I'll have to wait for my rubber to cool. I don't know how it got so hot."
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Lily Spencer, Pecari
Not so bouncy.
357
Lily Spencer, Pecari
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Arianna Valenti [Aladren]
May 27, 2016 12:00 PM
Definitely not by Arianna Valenti [Aladren]
Not for the first time, Arianna glanced at the Quidditch sign ups in Aladren. And not for the first time, she kept walking, in this case to Transfiguration. Her cousin was currently trying to get her to go out for the team, which to him was basically the most important thing a student here could do. It was true that she had a fear of heights that only he knew of, that she was currently trying to smite. It was also true that Arianna had been on the volleyball team with her friends at Hobart, and had actually had a good time. All of her friends had been on the team, and the uniforms were really cute. But Arianna did not know anyone on the team - which seemed to be comprised of only older boys - and, based off the school uniform, the Quidditch outfits were probably weird, too. So she waited.Transfiguration was something she was a little more sure about. She had looked through all of her textbooks, and from what she could tell, Trasnfiguration would allow her to change almost anything into something else, and it would be the greatest challenge of all her magical subjects. Both concepts enticed her. She had always been a top student at her old school, and never one to back away from a challenge. Sitting towards the center of the room, she looked forward to continuing to maintain a strong performance at her new school.
Taking out her black quill (which she had also practiced writing with all summer, so that she didn't look like a child ) she began to take notes as the professor spoke. Her dark curls were loose today, parted on the left, and she tucked a stray curl behind her ear as she wrote. She raised an eyebrow when Professor Skies explained that some people might not see the benefits of the subject. How dumb did you have to be not to immediately see the benefits of turning one thing into something else you wanted? If she really got good at this, Arianna might not ever have to go shopping again! Her wardrobe would only be limited by her magical ability.
She was less enthused, however, by the particular subject of today's class. She didn't need a bouncy ball, that was a toy for little kids! As the box came around, Arianna chose a round pebble, figuring that it was probably very difficult to achieve a perfect sphere on her own. Better to just focus on the size and the material. Continuing her notes, Arianna began to wonder why magical people didn't also study things like chemistry and science - that would probably be very useful in understanding how transformations worked. Ignorant wizards. It reminded her of the parents at her old school, so sure that their way was the only correct one.
She began to fill out her chart, writing in a neat, round cursive all the physical qualities of her stone. She even picked it up and dropped it a few inches to the desk, to see if it had any bouncy qualities already. But as dark eyes looked up, she caught sight of her neighbor, who appeared to have decided to just go for it.
Arianna put down her quill, distracted by the idea of seeing one of her classmates perform magic. It was only the first day, after all. Had this girl taken some sort of prep classes before arriving at Sonora? It wouldn't have surprised Arianna, some of the kids at her old school were already preparing for the SATs. As if they needed an additional leg up, on top of their money and connections.
Nope, apparently this girl had no more experience than Arianna did. But she just went for it anyway. Must be a Pecari. She smirked as the rubber fell on the ground. The girl was acting like a complete baby, putting her hands in her mouth and stomping her foot. Clearing her expression to neutral before anyone saw, Arianna was almost reminded of her own little sister, Elisa. Although, Elisa would never wipe her hands on her outfit like that, no matter how ugly the school uniform was. Arianna had taught her better.
"It's probably part of the transfiguration process, it has to heat up to change shape," she found herself answering automatically, in a matter-of-fact tone, before holding up her own neat worksheet, “It's like arts and crafts - there are steps.” Now why had she done that? Probably she was thrown off by the girl's accent - there were so many international students here! Yes, that had to be it.
OOC: Assuming Lily has a noticeable accent, feel free to ignore that last bit if that is not the case.
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Arianna Valenti [Aladren]
Definitely not
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Arianna Valenti [Aladren]
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Lily Spencer
May 27, 2016 6:26 PM
Give it a go? by Lily Spencer
The witch sitting next to her sounded condescending and Lily immediately put her guard up. She’d been surrounded by condescending witches all her life and being told what to do did not sit well with her. “I don’t think that’s right,” she said, glad she at least knew something about Transfiguration. “Heating up doesn’t usually happen if one transfigures an object correctly. Otherwise with something like animal transfiguration, those poor creatures would be dead by the time they were transfigured back.” She imagined a bird turning into toast inside simply to transfigure into a glass and shivered. “My siblings all went to Sonora before me,” she explained, “so I know a bit about it.”Instead of verbally attacking the other witch, as Lily was prone to do in response to being talked down to, she looked over with disinterest at the chart. “These are one of the things I don’t like about being a first year,” she said, sitting down to fill out the dull boxes. “It’s more fun to get right into the good stuff instead of learning all these tedious steps. Do you make arts and crafts?” She imagined sewing pillows and designing tables and putting together sticks and glue - all very unappealing. “I’d rather be playing sports or climbing trees outside with my friends.”
As Lily filled out the boxes, disappointed that her first attempt had been unsuccessful, she found it actually rather easy. The similarities between a bouncy ball and a rubber were obvious. They were both soft, smooth, both somewhat bouncy and, in this case, her eraser was round. She imagined her ball would be pink like this eraser and included that. Differences were obvious as well: a ball was usually made of plastic instead of rubber, it was much larger and it was hollow on the inside.
Once she’d filled out most of her table, she looked over at her neighbour. “I’m Lily Spencer, by the way,” she said. “What’s your name?” Even if this witch was condescending, Lily thought she ought to give her a chance. “What house were you sorted into?” she added. She already knew this witch wasn’t in Pecari, but she guessed either Crotalus or Aladren: those looked to be the more supercilious houses. Lily’s cousins had also attended Sonora many years before her, and two of them had been the snobby pure-blood types. However, there was her sister, Charlotte, who’d been sorted into Crotalus as well, but Lily didn’t think Charlotte was very condescending; only a little.
“Have you finished your table? Want to give it a go?” She half-hoped the other witch did just as awfully as she, but at the same time she wanted to see some magic happen for someone her age. Lily hopped off of her stool and picked up her now-cooled eraser off the floor. She’d try again in a bit and hope for less embarrassing results this time.
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Lily Spencer
Give it a go?
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Lily Spencer
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Arianna V,
June 12, 2016 9:45 PM
Don't mind if I do by Arianna V,
Arianna's dark eyes narrowed, an impulsive reaction to the idea that she could be incorrect. In science last year, they had learned about changes in matter, and how they could be caused by either physical or chemical changes. Changing a pebble to a bouncy ball seemed like a chemical change to her, like mixing flour, sugar and water and all the other things to bake a cake. Add some heat, and you would change the ingredients to something else, irreversibly. Of course, with magic, it might be possible to change them back. It might be possible to break all the rules of science she'd had to study at her old school."Interesting," she muttered quietly, still working her mind through it. She didn't entirely believe the idea that you could change molecules of a living thing and it wouldn't hurt. But Arianna could accept that magic broke at least some of the rules taught in Papa's strict curriculum. This was going to be a fun letter home.
The other girl's mention of older siblings reminded Arianna of Elisa, Arianna's sister and the baby of the Valenti cousins.
"Not really," she shook her head, "But my little sister does." Elisa was always making magic wands out of pencils, and turning their school supplies into all sorts of fantastical things. Their shared room at home was filled with the nine year-old's creations. Much more useful than climbing trees, which really there weren't very many of in Brooklyn, anyway. Arianna had always thought Elisa might be an inventor, someday. But these days, she tended to hope for witch as her sister's future career.
"What sports do you play?" she asked, only half paying attention as she continued to fill out her form. Arianna noted that she planned for her ball to be about the size of her fist, with a blue tie-dye color. It needed to be firm enough to retain its shape when it bounced, and not stay flat and weird, like a basketball with no air from gym class. And it couldn't be soft like a volleyball, the sport she had played back home. Volleyballs didn't really bounce well, without enough force. Maybe like a stronger, hardened version of putty, then.
"Arianna Valenti, in Aladren," she responded, still unsure herself why she was giving the girl any of her time. The last name seemed familar, although Arianna couldn't place from where. Perhaps this made Lily an Important Person, then. Yes, that was why Arianna was still chatting with her.
She nodded when Lily asked if she was ready to try, and took her wand out of her robe pocket. It was walnut, and like her cousin, had dragon heart string at it's core, which she thought was a very gory thing to casually on one's person at all times.
Looking back at the pebble, dark eyes stared very deliberately, wand carefully pointed at her target, "Hevea."
Some sparks of yellow light shot from her wand, and... nothing. The pebble looked exactly as it had before. She frowned, picking up the pen she had been using to take notes and prodded at the pebble. A small indent formed. Like a hot cake, fresh out of the oven, or wet clay.
"Well," Arianna observed, picking up the pebble and rolling it between her fingers, so that it would regain its roundness, "That was anti-climatic."
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Arianna V,
Don't mind if I do
343
Arianna V,
0
5