The Epitome of Academia. on Charms

Professor Light

May 06, 2012 11:28 PM

Quiz {I&II} by Professor Light

He’d skipped lunch, wrapped up in a novel he’d been consumed by ever since the summer and hadn’t managed to finish reading yet though the school year had now dragged on. Hazel eyes glanced up at the clock and then dropped back to the book, thumbing a few pages to see if he’d manage to finish the chapter before his two minutes were up. Salvador looked from one brother to the other, his face beginning to twist in rage as understanding dawned in the same moment. “We have been betrayed. Every moment leading up to this one. Like pawns we’ve been played, urging us across the board only to be captured, blinding us with visions of glory. Glory we were never meant to achieve.” The waves crashed upon the prison of sand and wind. It began to crumble around the three of them. Salvador took a sharp inhale of breath and just as sharply let it out, a hand rising to his cheek. Blood painted his finger. Sand had turned into glass, into daggers, and the wind wrapped around the three brothers, daggers thrust forward and decorating their skin. Two minutes up. Caesar dog-eared the page and shut the book, setting it down on the desk and let his gaze travel to the door where his beginner class entered.

“Afternoon,” He greeted, smiling a little wider at his more favored students. “take your seats.” On each level of the seminar styled seating a short quiz appeared in front of a student the moment they sat down. For a week Caesar had set a little time in each class to go over the ways in which Charms could seep into other branches of magic such as Transfiguration and Defense Against the Dark Arts. He wanted to work on more clearly defining what he was teaching for the children new to magic.

1) The _____ charm enables the caster to protect themselves behind a magical barrier that protects them from magical entities and offensive spells. The basic incantation is _____.

2) The _____ charm is able to drive away ______; creatures that feed off human happiness in turn causing despair, and have the ability to steal one’s soul. The incantation is _____ and can only be cast if one thinks ________ thoughts.

3) State the difference between Charms and Transfiguration in your own words.

4) The ____ charm produces light. Name up to three magical creatures that are driven away by light.

5) The ______ charm is often used to relieve an opponent of their wand or weapon of choice in a duel. The incantation is _______.

“Once you’ve finished with your quiz, step down and bring it to me and we’ll start your practical exam.” He leaned back and as the soft scratch scratch scratch of ink dipped quills filled the room hazel eyes brightened with realization that he had a few more minutes now to finish the chapter while the students were occupied. He didn’t have to pay any attention during the writing portion of the small exam since a few anti-cheating spells of his own making lingered on each person’s paper. If any student snuck a glance at a neighbor’s paper with the intention to cheat they’d see ridiculous answers (such as: The incantation is Giveittomenowencio) and the cheating student would feel compelled to copy that down. Their confusion faded a few seconds after writing it down and then they would have the chance to fix it up if they wished. He propped the book up and continued reading.

Bartolome clenched his eyes shut, his vision swimming in blood as it dripped from the wound on his scalp into his eyes. Whipping his wand out and slashing it through the air he shouted for Salvador and Deandre to - but his words were lost in the fury of glass whirling around their three forms, separating each from one another, tornado of ripped skin and daggers. “Fire! Make a fire! Incendio!” A burst of flame intended to melt the glass but it was flung back at him and Bartolome began to burn. His eyes opened wide, mouth parting in pain but his anguished scream was cut short as glass slashed across his tongue and he fell to the ground, his body consumed in fire. Caesar continued reading on, brow creased in agitation, turning another page and reaching the final passage of the chapter. He heard a student’s paper rustle, sensed someone getting up, and rushed through the words, needing to finish before the student reached him. ... worked and the glass began to fall away, dulled edges crumbling into sand, the prison lapped up by the ocean. Breathing heavily, chest and neck bleeding, Salvador hurried to his fallen brother’s side and turned Bartolome over. “He’s breathing, Deandre. Just barely.” Deandre looked around them, wand raised though his arm shook unsteadily, unable to fully support the weight of the wand. His eyes suddenly flickered, catching some shadow from across the island beach. It was -

Caesar closed the book and set it down as a student approached, handing him their quiz. “Alright then, here’s your candlestick.” He had his desk divided into two parts. On his left hand side the first years were to cast Wingardium Leviosa on the candlestick and make it hover for thirty full seconds. Then, while it remained hovering, they were required to cast Incendio and manage to focus keeping the candlestick hovering while simultaneously lighting it. On Caesar’s right hand side the second years were required to cast Tabesco which was a spell that melted wax down. Then they were to cast Efformente which molded the wax into the second year’s chosen sculptural representation of whatever they wanted. “Remember, you are allowed two attempts at each spell.” Caesar leaned back in his seat, motioning for other students to wait their turns before replacing their alternate first or second year classmate. He had a sheet with each student’s name written on it where he wrote down their performance grade for the practical exam portion of the day.

Subthreads:

Quizzy quiz... by Waverly Canterbury - Pecari

This should be good.... by Clara Abernathy, Pecari

... by Angel Shield - Teppenpaw

This is not fun. by Aria Yale, Teppenpaw

Just another day by Gareth Whitebriar - Crotalus

The Epitome of Academia. by Cepheus Princeton, Crotalus

0 Professor Light Quiz {I&II} 0 Professor Light 1 5

Waverly Canterbury - Pecari

May 07, 2012 10:00 PM

Quizzy quiz... by Waverly Canterbury - Pecari

Waverly had tried her hardest to study for this Charms quiz, but she was feeling a little overwhelmed with schoolwork. She had fallen asleep just a few days ago studying for this quiz and so didn't feel as prepared as she would've liked. But Charms was one of her strong subjects so she wasn't that worried. The more she liked a subject, the more she paid attention and learned as much as she could about it. Plus it was the class she got to use her wand, so she enjoyed it. She just didn't like tests or quizzes, and these were different, from her experience. There were paper exams, and then practical ones where they had to actual perform magic. She hadn't had to do that in her elementary school, but she had to remember that this wasn't a muggle school.

Waverly walked into class, smiling brightly at her Charms teacher. She thought he was really cool and she learned so much more than just Charms in this class. It was like a lesson on spells interspersed with lessons on the magical culture. She really wished they had some kind of class like that here. Oh well. This class helped a lot in that department.

She took a seat at her usual desk somewhere close to the front and a short quiz appeared in front of her. She looked it over and then took out a pen. It looked like she was one of the very few who had a muggle pen, but she didn't think twice about it before starting her quiz.

1) The shield charm enables the caster to protect themselves behind a magical barrier that protects them from magical entities and offensive spells. The basic incantation is protego.

2) The __?___ charm is able to drive away dementors; creatures that feed off human happiness in turn causing despair, and have the ability to steal one’s soul. The incantation is Expecto Patronum and can only be cast if one thinks happy thoughts.

3) State the difference between Charms and Transfiguration in your own words.

In Charms, a person can create things using magic and control objects, but can't turn an object into something else like someone can in Transfiguration.

4) The Lumos charm produces light. Name up to three magical creatures that are driven away by light.

1. vampires
2. Gytrashes
3. ...ghosts?

5) The disarming charm is often used to relieve an opponent of their wand or weapon of choice in a duel. The incantation is Expelliarmus.

Waverly was a tiny bit annoyed that she couldn't answer all the questions confidently, but she wasn't perfect. She'd just have to study more for the next quiz. She spent another ten minutes trying hard to think of the right answers for the questions she hadn't filled out, but nothing was coming to her. She sighed finally and gave up. She stood and left her pen on the desk and brought her wand with her. She handed in her quiz with a, "Here you go," and then looked at the other part of her exam.

She was a lot better at the actual magic part than the actual written quiz. She didn't like memorizing unnecessary information, although she supposed quizzes usually were on necessary information. Well, she was ready for this one at least, she assumed.

Then the professor handed her a candlestick and she bit her bottom lip. After she learned the instructions, she put the candlestick down and took a deep breath. She could do this. "Tabesco," she said softly, not wanting to disturb whoever was still working on their quiz. She watched in delight as the candle melted down into a puddle. Then came the tricky part. She envisioned a flower with pretty orange petals. The candle wax was yellow, so she concentrated hard on the image of an Arizona poppy, one of her mom's favorite flowers. She had a bunch growing in her backyard and some in vases, so she had a solid image of it.

"Efformente," she said, and watched magic transform the wax. She held hard onto the image of the Arizona poppy and watched her thoughts reflect back to the poppy. One of the petals was drooping and it only seemed to have 4 1/2 petals, but it could pass for her mental image. She smiled proudly. "It's supposed to be an Arizona poppy," she told her professor just in case he didn't know. Her favorite flower ever was a sunflower, but they were more rare in her part of town and she didn't think her wax figure would have turned out as well.

"Thanks, Professor Light!" She smiled before turning to get her things and allow the next student to go ahead.

0 Waverly Canterbury - Pecari Quizzy quiz... 0 Waverly Canterbury - Pecari 0 5

Clara Abernathy, Pecari

May 07, 2012 11:57 PM

This should be good.... by Clara Abernathy, Pecari

Clara walked to her Charms class from the dormatory and was a little nervous. She had done Charms before at home with her dad, but this would be a little different. Instead of having her dad there to guide and encourage her she would be in a room with other students, who if she screwed up, would be the poor victims of her own folly. She did okay with Charms, but like everything else around her, she found herself at the mercy of what can only be described as fate and fate most days didn't seem to like the little Pecari all that much. At least that's how Clara saw it. She shrugged her slender shoulders and kept walking finally reaching the Charms class.

As she entered she caught sight of the Professor sitting behind the desk and stiffled a chuckle when she realized that he appeared to be reading a book. She loved books and grinned as she found herself a seat close to the front. She listened intently as Professor Light introduced himself and told them about their Quiz. Clara had always disliked quizzes and this one would be no different, but she would get through it just as she had every other one she had had to take. She sat down as the professor intrduced himself and she politely smiled at him. She was a little surprised to see the paper appear on the desk before her and she looked over the questions.

1) The _shield____ charm enables the caster to protect themselves behind a magical barrier that protects them from magical entities and offensive spells. The basic incantation is _Protego____.

2) The _Patronus____ charm is able to drive away dementors______; creatures that feed off human happiness in turn causing despair, and have the ability to steal one’s soul. The incantation is _Expecto Patronum____ and can only be cast if one thinks __happy______ thoughts.

3) State the difference between Charms and Transfiguration in your own words.

A Charm is the ability to change what an object can do, Transfiguration is the ability to change what an object is.

4) The _lumos___ charm produces light. Name up to three magical creatures that are driven away by light.

1)Vampires?
2)Yeti?
3)Trolls?

5) The _disarming_____ charm is often used to relieve an opponent of their wand or weapon of choice in a duel. The incantation is _Expelliomus______.

Once Clara was very certain she had answered every question to the best of her memory, she got up from her seat and stood in line to wait for her turn. She smiled as she realized that she sort-of knew the girl before her. She waited silently as Waverly finished her part of the exam in front of the professor and Clara stepped up to his desk when Waverly left. Clara waved slightly at Waverly and smiled as Waverly walked past her back to her seat.

Clara smiled nervously at Professor Light as she stood before him getting ready to start the next part of the exam. Please gods don't let me set his hair or anything else around us on fire she silently prayed as she took the candlestick from him. She set the candlestick back down on the desk and raised her wand. Wingardium Leviosa she said, pointing her wand at the candlestick. It began to hover up off of the desk and it wobbled slightly, but it stayed in the air. Now for the tricky part the 11 year old told herself as she prepared for the lighting of the candle thing.Incendio she chanted loudly and nearly yelped in shock as the candle lit, but the flame was slightly higher than the Pecari had intended for it to be.

Clara's eyes widened slightly as she tried to figure out how to make the flame die down just a little bit. She decided it might work better if she tried the spell again so she dispelled the charm. Still concentrating on making the candlestick hover she tried the charm again. Incendio she said again, hoping that the charm worked right this time. A flame sprang to life on the end of the candle and despite it sparking a bit as it lit, the flame actually became visible on the wick. She let out a sigh of relief and excitment and in doing so, forgot the hovering candlestick for a moment. The flame snuffed out and the candlestick tipped over onto its side on the desk. Clara covered her mouth with both hands as she tried to cover up her embarrassment. "I am soo sorry Professor Light!" she apologized profusely as she backed slightly away from the desk.

0 Clara Abernathy, Pecari This should be good.... 232 Clara Abernathy, Pecari 0 5

Angel Shield - Teppenpaw

May 08, 2012 8:18 PM

... by Angel Shield - Teppenpaw

Angel slumped into the chair nearest to the door. The slippers slid of his slightly damp feet, and a small nudge tucked them neatly under the edge of his too large robe. A small happy sigh escaped his lips as he rested his hot feet on the cold floor. Even though it had only been a few days sense he was forced into wearing the slippers, he could already feel the soles of his feet beginning to soften due to the time spent cradled in the soft shoes instead of forever treading on the open ground. He huffed softly as he reached down to itch the arch of his right foot.

Another sigh escaped him when the quiz appeared. Book assignments were hard enough, but trying to recall information without the aid of books was extremely difficult for the Teppenpaw. Lips that held the slightest hint of pink slowly shaped the words as his fingers began picking at the quill, fraying the feather as he carefully felt out the questions.

1. Shield ~~Potg~~ ~~Prteego~~ Protago
2. Petrownis happiness
3. Charms maks stuff happens, Transfiguration chang things
4. Lumus
5. Xplumis

Crimson eyes stared forlornly at the scribbled words, the letters were a bit too large, and staggered awkwardly across the parchment. He knew that they were poorly made, that the letters weren’t in the right places and some were missing but it was the best he could do without his books. That and without the time needed to carefully look up difficult words to make sure all the letters were positioned properly. There were a lot of blanks left. Angel wasn’t very good at remembering the names of charms, just the incantations. It was frustrating because he could see in his mind what they did but the anxiety of taking a test, and feeling unprepared made him forget the shapes of the words, leaving him with nothing.

Staring at the parchment wasn’t helping to make it any better, so Angel gave up and slipped his feet back into the slippers before shuffling up to the front of the class. With his eyes fixed firmly on the desk and not the man sitting behind it Angel handed over the pitiful test. Shifting slightly, Angel directed his attention to the candle. His wand moved like an extension of himself, there was none of the awkwardness that he felt when wielding a quill. “Tabesco” he said softly and the wax began to melt. Glancing up for a brief instant “Efformente” the wax shifted swirled and began to harden into a small sculpture of the Professor’s face. Angel studied the sculpture and frowned slightly. It was far better than most children would be able to produce, his natural talent with a wand gave him the ability to easily perform spells correctly the first time he saw them. Watching the other second years had given him enough to work with to do the spells with ease, but it still wasn’t quite as good it would have been if the Professor had demonstrated them for his eager gaze.

The task compete, Angel returned to his seat leaving the tiny sculpture behind, just as he always crumpled and left his drawings behind.

0 Angel Shield - Teppenpaw ... 0 Angel Shield - Teppenpaw 0 5

Aria Yale, Teppenpaw

May 08, 2012 8:35 PM

This is not fun. by Aria Yale, Teppenpaw

Although Aria may have a difficult time understanding the various people of this school, she was still relatively pretty good at the magical part of it. Potions was a little easier due to her mother’s position in the community, but charms wasn’t too hard for her either. Perhaps it was because it was supposed to be the most used magic of them all, but she couldn’t say for certain. DADA also mixed in well with charms because it dealt within the same sphere as charms. Transfiguration was completely different though and Aria sometimes had a difficult time with it because it used up so much of her concentration. Maybe if she could understand why someone would need to know Transfiguration and why certain things are turned into something else, she would have a better grasp of it.

She was coming to find that she did not enjoy quizzes all that much. She understood the reasons for a quiz as it was to test one’s knowledge, but the anxiety that quizzes brought forth was not at all fun and she knew that her balance was completely thrown into the wind due to her inability to meditate properly. Still, there wasn’t much she was able to do about it as this seemed to be the only way for the school to assess each of their strengths and abilities.

Inwardly sighing, Aria looked down at the test in front of her. Well… it seemed simple enough by looking at it, but she knew that it would be anything but simple…

1) The _shield__ charm enables the caster to protect themselves behind a magical barrier that protects them from magical entities and offensive spells. The basic incantation is _Protego___.

2) The _Patronus___ charm is able to drive away _Dementors__; creatures that feed off human happiness in turn causing despair, and have the ability to steal one’s soul. The incantation is _Expecto Patronum__ and can only be cast if one thinks _ happy__ thoughts.

3) State the difference between Charms and Transfiguration in your own words. Transfiguration is when you change an object from its current state to something else. This can be in any physical state (solid, liquid, or gas) as well as an inanimate to inanimate, inanimate to animate (vice versa), or animate to animate. This is extremely difficult to do. Charms is basically all other forms of spells where an object is not transformed.

4) The _lumos__ charm produces light. Name up to three magical creatures that are driven away by light. Inferi, Red Caps, and Lethifold

5) The _disarming__ charm is often used to relieve an opponent of their wand or weapon of choice in a duel. The incantation is _expelliarmus__.

Aria wasn’t sure if she would get points off if she spelled anything wrong, but she had done her best. The test was a bit strange because they were all charms used in Defense and some weren’t even yet taught to them because of their difficulty level. Even though she knew the spells and the name of the charms, Aria found her most challenging of all the questions was answering the difference between charms and transfiguration but also remembering three creatures that fear the light. Aria had to think back to the legends and fairytales that were told in stories back in the community to even think of any at all. She knew that she probably would have gotten them wrong, but she could hardly be blamed for that. And she wasn’t sure if using the Patronus Charm counted as ‘light’ or not.

She got up and handed in her paper. She thought she did alright, but she knew that her exam wasn’t perfect. She hoped to do better on the practical, but watching the students in front of her, she knew this wasn’t going to be any easier. She never learned how to do two incantations at once! That seemed incredibly difficult. She was still trying to just keep an object levitated without dropping it repeatedly. Aria was finding that she liked Professor Light less and less because he was asking so much of them when they had only been there for a couple of short months.

Still, taking her turn, Aria managed to levitate the candle on her first try and held it for 30 seconds. Unfortunately, the moment she tried to concentrate on lighting the candle, the candle dropped back down. Trying for a second time, she again managed to get it in the air for 30 seconds, but only managed a whisper of a flame before it fell back down again. Sighing with a slight shrug, Aria nodded at the Professor before returning to her seat.

It was what it was.

0 Aria Yale, Teppenpaw This is not fun. 0 Aria Yale, Teppenpaw 0 5

Gareth Whitebriar - Crotalus

May 08, 2012 9:13 PM

Just another day by Gareth Whitebriar - Crotalus

Gareth took a seat near the back of the classroom out of courtesy for the shorter students. Sometimes he felt bad for the first years that had to be in the same class as him seems he looked so much bigger than them. His friendly demeanor helped dispel the image that he was going to stomp them into the ground, but it only really worked when he was talking to them. Well, all he could do was continue to be nice and eventually everyone would be comfortable with the overly large boy in the classroom. The problem wasn’t so much that he was just tall, it was that he was bulky as well. Gareth was built like a young bear.

A smile curved his lips as the Quiz appeared. The Whitebriar children were quite familiar with the evil that was quizzes as their tutors all seemed to think that random quizzes kept children focused. Dipping his quill, Gareth began to write while being careful not to let his penmanship get too sloppy. That was one of the few things the tutor hadn’t been able to break him of, his writing always looked like chicken scratch.

Gareth Whitebriar, 2nd year Crotalus

1) The shield charm enables the caster to protect themselves behind a magical barrier that protects them from magical entities and offensive spells. The basic incantation is Protego.

2) The Patronus charm is able to drive away Dementors; creatures that feed off human happiness in turn causing despair, and have the ability to steal one’s soul. The incantation is Expecto Patronum and can only be cast if one thinks happy thoughts.

3) State the difference between Charms and Transfiguration in your own words. Charms are the different spells we use on a day to day basis, they are very useful and can do a number of things such as mend broken objects and provide light. Transifguration is changing one object into another instead of just doing a charm to the object.

4) The Lumos charm produces light. Name up to three magical creatures that are driven away by light. Vampires, Inferi, Red Caps

5) The disarming charm is often used to relieve an opponent of their wand or weapon of choice in a duel. The incantation is expelliarmus.

Gareth looked his answers over, but in the end felt pretty good about them. Standing up, he made his way carefully to the front of the class room to avoid tripping over anything. After handing in the exam he took out his wand and pointed it at the candle. “Tabesco!” The candle remained remarkably candle like. His second attempt managed to half melt the thing so he gave the second spell a try “efformente! Unfortunately he didn’t really have a strong image in mind because he’d been to worried about the fact that the candle hadn’t been melted enough to work. A small frown curved his lips as he stared at the drippy looking knot that his candle stick had twisted itself into.

“Er…right.” He mumbled as he headed back to his seat. Wayward thoughts about his sad performance distracted the tall Crotalus from the more vital task of walking in a straight line and he stumbled over a book bag that had been sticking slightly out in the isle. Gareth managed to catch himself on the desk, but his large hand knocked the student’s parchment to the floor. “Merlin’s beard, I’m sorry!” he blushed as he hastily bent over to pick it up.

0 Gareth Whitebriar - Crotalus Just another day 0 Gareth Whitebriar - Crotalus 0 5

Cepheus Princeton, Crotalus

May 11, 2012 12:56 AM

The Epitome of Academia. by Cepheus Princeton, Crotalus

Cepheus was bored of charms class. He enjoyed the practical portion, but learning about the tiresome lessons on culture didn't interest him. He thought his professor read too much, especially during class. His blue eyes watched him read for a bit before finding his way to a seat towards the centre of the classroom. Cepheus enjoyed reading, but he'd much rather have someone read to him. Someone who had a nice voice, like his mother.

A quiz appeared on his desk as he sat down and Ceph fished out a quill and a bottle of blue ink. He settled himself in his seat, glancing at the person next to him as he did before almost every quiz. It was a habit from looking at the exams and quizzes of his cousins when they were being tutored. He didn't cheat any more as it was deemed "illegal" and "bad show" at a real institution, but it was a habit nonetheless. He hadn't cheated on any quizzes or exams since he'd arrived at Sonora, a feat he was proud of. He certainly knew a lot more when he applied himself.

1) The shield charm enables the caster to protect themselves behind a magical barrier that protects them from magical entities and offensive spells. The basic incantation is protego.

2) The patronus charm is able to drive away dementors; creatures that feed off human happiness in turn causing despair, and have the ability to steal one’s soul. The incantation is expecto patronum and can only be cast if one thinks happy thoughts.

3) State the difference between Charms and Transfiguration in your own words.
In charms, I can make objects do things that it wouldn't do in normal circumstances. I can enchant things with charms. Transfiguration, however, is a different sort where I can transfigure objects into different things.

4) The lumos charm produces light. Name up to three magical creatures that are driven away by light. vampires, red caps, dark spirits

5) The disarming charm is often used to relieve an opponent of their wand or weapon of choice in a duel. The incantation is expelliarmus.

Cepheus looked proudly at his paper. Done with his own brain. It actually had a lot of information when he probed it enough. He stood up and went to the professor's desk to hand in his quiz. He received a candlestick in return and he nodded. This shouldn't be too difficult, so he thought. Cepheus pointed his wand at the candlestick.

"Tabesco," he said, watching the candlestick melt halfway and stop. He frowned. He cleared his throat. "Tabesco," he said clearly, and the candle melted the rest of the way down. He didn't take his blue eyes off of the wax as he decided to shape the wax into the simplest thing he could think of. "Efformente," he said this time, and the wax bubbled a bit, but did nothing else. He huffed, glancing at the professor once before looking back at the wax. "This'll be my second try," he told professor Light, and pointed his wand at the wax again. "Efformente," he said clearly, this time with a solid image in his head. It was in the shape of his eagle owl Roscoe, indents of feathers and all. Only...half of it was. The other half of "Roscoe" was flat and firm. Botheration.

"Merlin's beard," he hissed under his breath. He was out of chances now. He turned around and went back to his seat begrudgingly. He fell into his seat and crossed his arms, glaring at his desk. He decided right then that he hated practical exams.

0 Cepheus Princeton, Crotalus The Epitome of Academia. 0 Cepheus Princeton, Crotalus 0 5