Contributing a question on Care of Magical Creatures

Professor K.

December 24, 2008 11:22 PM

Lesson 1 for 3rd, 4th, and 5th years by Professor K.

Now that Kiva went home after her last lesson, she missed out on a lot of the comings and goings of Sonora. It actually made her rather sad to not be a part of it all like she used to be and though she knew she would return to her original duties after her maternity leave ended, she couldn’t help but feel a little left out of it all. It was a silly thing, she knew, and she was absolutely happy for all the time she was able to have with her son, but… it was just that small bit of her that was wistful.

She waited patiently in her clearing for the students to arrive. The weather had steadily grown colder as the weeks progressed here at Sonora. Kiva no longer wore her usual capris and sandals, but instead, opted to wear a good pair of jeans, boots, and a sweater beneath her heavier cloak. The snow would be falling soon and Kiva hoped the students would be dressed appropriate now that the weather is changing.

Once all the third, fourth, and fifth years had arrived, Kiva smiled brightly at them all. Normally the fifth years would have their own lesson, but she felt this would be a good review for them so that they didn’t have to cram so badly after midterm due to the trip to the horse ranch. “Afternoon everyone. I hope you all are enjoying getting ready for the concert at the end of term.” She knew that it probably was a lot of added stress for them, but she hoped they were excited about it just the same. “Okay, because it’s starting to get colder out, we’re just going to go straight into the lesson. Everyone gather around.” Kiva lifted a cage that was behind the table sitting in the middle of the clearing and set it gentle down for all to see.

"This here," She indicated the creature, "is a Clabbert. His name happens to be Art. He actually resides here at the school. He likes to play games, so if you ever happen upon him in the paths just keep a close eye on him." Kiva informed them. Art the Clabbert was hairless and smooth. His skin was green in color and his hands and feet were webbed. His arms and legs were long and strong to enable him to swing from branch to branch. His head at a set of horns and a wide set mouth that made him look like he was grinning. Had his mouth been open, the students would have seen a mouth full of razor sharp teeth.

"Clabberts are tree-dwelling creatures originating in the southern states of America. Of course, now they can be found everywhere thanks to exporting. Clabberts feed mainly on small lizards and birds." Kiva informed them. "Now, as you can see, Clabberts look to be a mixture between a monkey and a frog. They have long arms and legs for swinging between branches, but also have webbed hands and toes. And, obviously, their skin is green. However," Kiva paused here and looked out at her students, "their most distinguished feature isn't their skin color or their teeth or their strange appearance; it's the large pustule in the middle of their heads. See it?" Kiva asked, gesturing to the large knob on the creature’s forehead. "That pustule actually turns scarlet and flashes when they sense danger." Kiva explained, hoping that the idea of a creature being able to physically show and alert another of danger would be interesting to hear.

"The Magical Community in America used to keep Clabberts around to warn them of any dangers, including approaching Muggles. But, after a short period of time, they discovered that keeping Clabberts wasn’t the best idea. Especially since Muggles would asked all sorts of questions about the ‘lights’ that they would see. In order to prevent Witches and Wizards from keeping Clabberts as pets for the sole purpose of using them as alarms, the Magical Community decided to place heavy fines on those who used Clabberts that way." Kiva told them. It was actually fairly common for the Magical society to try to misuse creatures for their own benefits. Though, she supposed that could go for the Muggle community as well. "Does anyone have any stories dealing with Clabberts or any questions on the creatures?"

OOC: You all know the drill. 200 word limit, detailed posts. The longer and more creative the posts, the more points you'll receive.
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Subthreads:

Contemplating Clabberts by Helena Layne

And this is one of the reasons I love Florida. by Laurie Cider

Contributing a question by Grayson Wright

0 Professor K. Lesson 1 for 3rd, 4th, and 5th years 0 Professor K. 1 5

Helena Layne

December 27, 2008 1:50 AM

Contemplating Clabberts by Helena Layne

It was almost midterm. Before long, snow would start coming down on the enchanted grounds of Sonora, classes would stop for two glorious weeks, and Helena would make the long trip home to South Carolina. She wasn't sure she wanted to - the previous Christmas, with Geoff and Anne at Sonora, had been wonderful, and she knew she couldn't expect more from Vinny than 'tolerable' - but she was more than ready for a break. CATS were still suspended over her head on a regular basis, and with all the pressure she was under, she had started to feel...frail.

She smiled at Professor Kijewski, but she didn't offer the professor her undivided attention until she saw her lift a cage out. It was with a small jolt of surprise that Helena realized she recognized it, or at least its species. She'd never expected, for some reason, to see anything that made her think about home during a class, but there was nothing that could be but a Clabbert.

Her interest piqued, she leaned forward a little as Art was explained. She'd already read all of that in the textbook - if her daddy was going to buy textbooks and her brother let her use his old ones where they matched her list, the least she could do was actually read them - but she nodded along, anyway. Reading it and then hearing it worked best for her, and the more Helena was told about CATS, the more convinced Helena was that she needed every advantage she could beg or borrow or steal. Within reason, anyway.

When Professor Kijewski asked for stories or questions, she hesitated for a moment before raising her hand. "I'm - um - from South Carolina," she said when acknowledged, hoping no one had a deep grudge against all South Carolinians when it was only days away from being over for the half. "There's a few places around the border with Georgia the Cabinet's had to protect from Muggles because of the Clabbert populations there."

16 Helena Layne Contemplating Clabberts 88 Helena Layne 0 5

Laurie Cider

December 31, 2008 3:48 AM

And this is one of the reasons I love Florida. by Laurie Cider

Growing up in southern Florida had provided more than a fair share of advantages. Laurie was one of the few who could claim to spend her Christmas afternoon at the beach skim-boarding, or go for ten years without needing a winter coat beyond that of a light jacket. Three hours in any direction brought her to an unique coastline, and for six months out of the year, a third of the state's population moved northwards. She loved her home and its advantages, and before coming to Sonora, she had thought nothing of the lack of seasons the state gave her. That was before Sonora, though. Before Laurie had experienced the chilled thrill of a ripe autumn, the dusky colors of its changing leaves, and the early morning frosts that spun the outdoors in delicate webs of frozen dew and prickly ice. Sonora had made her an ardent fan of the seasons, and she loved none of them quite as much as she did the autumn.

It was part of the reason Laurie so relished attending her CoMC lessons in the afternoons. Professor K's lessons were always thoughtful and interesting, and while they often inspired pangs of home sickness for her absent pet lop rabbits Fudge and Cotton, she was still able to enjoy the spontaneity any sort of animal or magical creature inspired. This particular lesson held her undivided attention and once the ground was opened for discussion, she was quick to chime in.

"I live in Florida, and because of all the military bases, there are loads of UFO stories and enthusiasts. I didn't realize it until my dad explained it, but up in the pan handle, there's one stretch of old highway that is full of stories of strange floating lights that appear out of the fog, midair- and apparently, it's all due to Clabberts. People- wizards that is- have actually got in trouble for purposely trying to frighten the Clabbert population there to cause the lights and brew more stories." She paused, wincing slightly as jet of chilly air pushed through. "One of my brothers stil insists that it's actually aliens and not Clabberts."

0 Laurie Cider And this is one of the reasons I love Florida. 0 Laurie Cider 0 5

Grayson Wright

December 31, 2008 8:59 PM

Contributing a question by Grayson Wright

Being outside, Gray had decided, was a very stupid thing to do. When it wasn't too hot, it was inevitably too cold. The potential for disease was immense, and even when it was not fulfilled, going outside was still asking for a headache or a runny nose or both. The light was all wrong to read in as well, and it glared off his glasses much worse than inside-lights. Far better, in his opinion, to stay indoors.

Unfortunately, it wasn't always possible to stay indoors, even in the winter months. Gray could have happily set up shop in the library for life, but Professor Kijewski - an otherwise agreeable human being - insisted on holding her lessons outside. Gray didn't see why they had to see real animals when pictures and theory worked just as well, but no one had asked his opinion on that, so he bundled up in his coat, thanked the saints his mother knew how to knit, and suffered through his Care of Magical Creatures class.

He gave Professor Kijewski a grateful look when she started the lesson immediately and admitted it was cold. Gray tried not to think about the Concert; Anne, deciding everyone had to care for her roommate as she did, had volunteered him as a part of the production, and he was having regular attacks of a panic-like emotion over it. With a mittened hand, Gray pushed his glasses back up and blinked through them at what looked like a grinning monkey that had fallen into a bucket of green paint.

Clabbert. Named Art. Lived at the school. Originated in the South - that might be enough to earn him a spot in a story; Gray had a soft spot for the South - but could now be found everywhere. Had a -

He squinted in interest at the mention of the pustules on a clabbert's head. Now that was interesting. There was definitely going to be a clabbert written about. Maybe he'd be able to relate it to Norton, somehow. They could both be exported as pets and have to find their ways back home. The clabbert looked kind of like a Jimmy...

His attention was brought back to the lesson by his teacher and her request for stories or questions. Two girls, Anne's friend and his Quidditch game buddy Helena among them, gave stories before Gray could ask his question. "What, uh, kind of games do clabberts play?"

16 Grayson Wright Contributing a question 113 Grayson Wright 0 5