Professor Skies
September 28, 2012 11:58 AM
Intermediate Class - Hedgebrushes and hairhogs. by Professor Skies
Selina liked all her classes for different reasons. The beginners class were just starting out and she got to see them make their first steps with the subject. In the advanced class, she got to teach really interesting material, and knew that the majority of the students actively wanted to be there. People sometimes regarded intermediate classes as the wilderness in between; the novelty had worn off for the students but they weren't yet the elite, dedicated group. She didn't feel this. This class had got through the baby steps and was able to progress onto some interesting topics, including their first ventures into animate transfigurations. The fifth years were also the same age as her eldest daughter, which gave her a certain fondness for them, and for seeing them achieving things. She could then imagine similar sorts of things going on in her daughter's class. She tried not to notice the girls falling out with each other, or the kinds of looks the boys were giving them. She preferred not to imagine parallel events of those kind taking place in Krisalyn's school, although she wasn't so naïve as to assume that they didn't.“Good morning, class,” she smiled, as they filed in. “I am Professor Skies and I will be teaching you Transfiguration this term.” She went through the usual routine of calling the register, trying not to stare too hard at those whose names she recognised, and definitely trying to block the part of her brain that went into calculating whether these could be children of her former students. She wasn't wholly successful on either count. She followed this with the rest of the house-keeping, such as handing out schedules and going over rules before getting stuck into the class proper.
“I see from the previous class notes that some of you have begun inanimate to animate transfigurations. I hope you will humour me whilst I introduce it to those who have not and try to reassure them, and those of you who might have been nervous about it, that it is nothing to worry about. It is complex magic and you will not be perfect at it to start with. However, one of the concerns I have frequently heard from students is a worry over causing pain or suffering. This is very rarely the case. When you bring forth an incomplete animal, its other half continues to exist elsewhere. It is difficult to explain without going into a lot of complex theory, but the animal is still connected to the rest of itself, although you can't see it. Therefore it is not going to bleed to death, and it's unlikely it feels pain as it hasn't been cut or severed in any way. For example, your lesson today is going to involve hairbrushes and hedgehogs,” she picked up a hairbrush from her desk, “If I only transfigure the front half...” she cast the spell over the brush, consciously holding back some of her energy. Paws and a face appeared, the little nose twitching, whilst his back end remained a handle, which Professor Skies held him by. “Now, I'm not saying he'd do well in the wild. But if I had left half of his insides somewhere else, he would not last very long,” she placed him down on her desk, “I guarantee that he will still be twitching his nose when I'm done talking. If anyone has more questions about the theory or still has ethical concerns, please see me.
“We will be looking at two different spells today. Third years will be getting a hedgehog and trying to make it into a hairbrush. Fifth years will be doing the opposite. Fourth years may choose, depending on where they feel they currently are. You may choose to swap half way through the lesson if you feel you chose the wrong option.
“Those of you attempting to make the hedgehog into a hairbrush, your spell is 'capillius', and involves and upward sweeping wand motion,” she levitated a hedgehog from a box on the opposite side of her desk and demonstrated, before returning him to his original form and repeating the demonstration of the wand movement in slow motion. “I have placed fencing charms around your desks, so they should not be able to get away from you. I recommend wearing your gloves if you need to nudge them back to starting position, but you shouldn't have too much need to handle them. Call me if you need them levitating. I am sure you are all competent at the Charm but it can be a little more difficult when used on a live target and I do not want the poor things being bounced off the ceiling.
“For those of you attempting the brush to hedgehog transfiguration, your spell is 'Erinaceinae,' and you are required to do a circular motion with a flick,” she demonstrated this, both with a brush and in slow motion, before putting both spells up on the board.
“As is always the case with Transfiguration, both your source – that is the item in front of you – and your target – the item you are aiming to end up with – will have some similarities and some differences. Focussing on what you need to alter will help you to channel your energy more effectively. I assume by now that most of you are well practised at making notes on the similarities and differences between your source and your target. Third years may make notes if they wish but over the course of this term, I will expect you to begin to internalise these thoughts. Older years, you should be able to hold the differences you are aiming to alter in your head. If anyone still has difficulties with this method, or has queries about it, feel free to ask,” she invited. She wasn't sure that this specific style had been used by her predecessor, although in her mind there were a limited number of ways to approach the subject, and so she found herself assuming that, at the very least, something similar would have been used. She waved her wand and a list of categories appeared on the board to prompt any of them who might be struggling to think of ways in which to compare their objects.
“There are tests that I can perform to see the history of your transfigurations, for anyone who was thinking of trying to swap objects with their neighbour when I'm not looking. I will be extremely disappointed if I catch anyone attempting this and penalties will apply,” she informed them, sternly. She hoped that the fifth years, especially, would realise that it would benefit them little to cheat, as they needed all the practise they could get for their CATS, but it was only fair and sensible to give warning.
“If you are stuck, you have several choices. You may talk with your neighbours or, if you are a younger year, I hope those in the classes above will be willing to offer their expertise. Older years, it should not be at the cost of completing your own class work, and you may refuse if you have too many things to get done, but you will find it will benefit your theory and your understanding of your own casting ability to try to explain it to someone else. Finally you can, of course, call on me. Fifth years and fourth years working with brushes may come and get one from the front. Hands up if you are a third year or want to start with a hedgehog and I will levitate one over to you. Oh, and look,” she indicated the hedgebrush on her desk, who still looked as happy and healthy as when they had begun. She countered the spell that she had performed, returning the brush to its box.
OOC – normal posting rules apply. You may assume that Professor Skies gives you a hedgehog if you request one or swaps your brush/hedgehog part way through the lesson if you ask her to. Otherwise, tag if you need me.
Subthreads: Sonic is cuter than I thought. by Fae Sinclair, Crotalus with Russell Layne, Aladren
Well, it's better than if a lorry hit it... by Henny B-F-R with Evan Brockert, Aladren
Trying not to kill something. by Cepheus Princeton, Crotalus with Michael Grosvenor
I wonder which this qualifies as. by Arabella Brockert, Pecari with Theresa Carey, Pecari
I want them both. by Alicia Bauer, Aladren with Arthur Carey, Aladren
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Professor Skies
Intermediate Class - Hedgebrushes and hairhogs.
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Professor Skies
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Fae Sinclair, Crotalus
September 29, 2012 2:05 PM
Sonic is cuter than I thought. by Fae Sinclair, Crotalus
The classes were still too new for Fae with the professors to really feel a sense of stability in Sonora that she often came about after the first couple of days of maintaining a schedule, but she knew that it would come eventually. As it was, things were still just weird. She was in limbo and would remain so until Arnold told her what he wanted. Of course, she couldn’t really be the one to come right out and ask. She would look eager and desperate. Fae was not that girl. She refused to be. Thinking it and doing it were very different things. Not knowing gave her negative thoughts. He was disappointed even though he said he wouldn’t be. He did not like the way she looked or preferred someone else. She would never ask though. Never. To know something like that would be too much for her. She was sure she’d have a bit of jealousy in there and since she already didn’t think she was good enough, anything left would fly right out the window. No, it was best not to ask. At the moment, she could only hope that Arnold would finally tell her if they were dating or not so that she could have a better sense of it all.Did she want to date him? Of course. She liked him and he was attractive. She was like any other fifteen year old girl and dreamed of her first boyfriend and her first kiss. And, probably like every other Pureblood who was ever in existence, she wished she didn’t have to be forced into a contract to have that happen. There was a chance that it might have happened on its own, if life had given them the time and a little push, but now they would never know and she would never really know if it was what he wanted at all.
But that was neither here nor there. Now it was time for Transfiguration, not her best class, but certainly not her worst class. Her best was Charms, but Transfiguration ranked pretty well up with her favorites. It might take her a few tries before she was able to pull it off completely, but she had always been able to do it. Potions took great skill in perfecting and Defense took great hand and eye coordination, plus for one to be quick on their feet (neither of which Fae was really good at), so they were her worst, but Transfiguration was all confidence and ability.
Fae took notes and watched the Professor with interest as she explained that partial transfiguration did not harm animals. Truth be told, that was something Fae always wondered about. She didn't quite understand how the animal had been alive when half of it was missing, but her mother had simply said that it wasn't a real animal if the object itself wasn't real to start with. That had always made Fae feel better when it came to inanimate object to animate object transfiguration. But now listening to the professor, Fae came to understand that the animate to inanimate objects also weren't harmed because their other half existed elsewhere. She might not grasp it as fully as Alice or Arthur might have, but she felt she understood it enough.
When Fae received her hairbrush, she took a moment to study the brush and a hedgehog at a desk near her so that she could see the similarities as well as the differences. Although she would never admit this to anyone, Fae though the Hedgehogs were sort of cute to look at. But, Fae wasn’t a fan of animals in general, so admitting that would mean she might have a soft spot for them and then want one for herself.
Having figured out what she could by looking at the objects, Fae mentally ‘saw’ what would happen to the brush after she used the spell on it and filled in the parts of the brush that would change into the animal. Feeling confident enough in her work and how she pictured it, Fae took a breath and pointed her wand at the hairbrush. In a circular motion and a flick, Fae spoke the incantation, “Erinaceinae” and watched as her hairbrush filled out around the middle, sprouted a nose, eyes, and whiskers and grew four legs. It looked, by all means, like a hedgehog, but the bristles of the brush were still bristles of a brush and it had a plastic look to it. Not a complete success, but still not half bad either. “This isn't completely hopeless.” Fae commented to the person beside her. “How is your luck?”
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Fae Sinclair, Crotalus
Sonic is cuter than I thought.
0
Fae Sinclair, Crotalus
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5
Henny B-F-R
September 29, 2012 2:56 PM
Well, it's better than if a lorry hit it... by Henny B-F-R
Henny was a little nervous about beginning animate transfiguration. Not for the usual reasons that it was complicated and difficult or that she was worried about making horrible mutated things but because animate might well mean animal. She was much better at dealing with Muggle animals which was far more likely to be what they used in this class, as many magical animals were at least somewhat magic-proof. However, she resented the creeping into other, previously neat, safe and tidy areas of her life, the things which she did not like. She was already constantly needled by the possibility that dark creatures might come up in defence class – after all, one was far more likely to want to defend against the wretched beasts than to care for them.She listened with interest to Professor Skies' talk, although a little part of her brain was reserved for feeling uncomfortable about things. She recalled her textbook mentioning 'planes of existence' which – as it had been very unsatisfactorily glossed over – she imagined was the complex theory that the Professor had mentioned. She very much wanted to ask about it, or at least have some time to go and look it up in the library. She would, frankly, much rather have had a lengthy discussion on the theory than done the practical. She leaned sharply back as the hedgehog was levitated over to her, as if she did not trust Professor Skies not to drop it into her lap. Of course she did trust the Professor but she couldn't help the anxiety she felt over the thought of being prickled. As animals went, compared to magical animals, the hedgehog was fairly inoffensive. For a Muggle animal, it could pack a bit of a punch.
“The sooner you're a hairbrush, the better,” she informed it. She certainly would not have trouble calling up the will-powered for this spell. She fervently wanted to change the animal. But she needed a few moments to collect herself, to try to reduce any panic to a minimum, as it was not conducive to balanced, well-controlled spell casting, and to think about the similarities and differences between her source and her target. The spines/bristles was the most obvious connection. Size-wise, if you had a fairly large hairbrush, they could be on a par. A hairbrush could be brown, especially if it was wooden. This would make it a natural material which, although very different to the natural materials which made up a hedgehog, was closer than plastic. The similarities were becoming slightly more tenuous, and she thought they might have dried up. The hedgehog moved, the hairbrush shouldn't. They didn't share a function.
She pictured a fairly large brush with a round head, trying to picture the tail of the hedgehog extending out to form a handle, made out of wood with natural bristles. And, most importantly, keeping still. She focussed very definitely on the lack of movement, of stripping away the animacy.
“Capillius,” she cast, with a sweeping motion as they had been shown. The motion reminded her of bristles, which she thought it was probably supposed to, as spells were most effective when everything – words, wand movement and aim – all tied together. Looking back down she found that she had rounded off the hedgehog fairly nicely. Its legs were largely gone – there were some little stumps. What had been its face was still fairly clearly a face, though it looked like it had been stretched back. It had the pattern of woodgrain and the bristles looked much more bristly than prickly. But it twitched. Repeatedly and violently, as though – somewhere in the centre of whatever it now was – there was a violent case of the hiccups going on.
“Yeeshk,” said Henny, pulling a face as she surveyed the rather macabre object. She wasn't sure but she thought it might be slightly more off-putting than when it had just been a hedgehog. She was glad that Professor Skies had explained that it wouldn't feel pain as, much as she disliked animals, she had no desire to make them suffer. If she hadn't known better, she would have said that this was suffering.
She focussed her energy again, concentrating on a lack of movement. Perhaps that was what had been so hard before. Very occasionally, she found herself thinking of things that needed to go away for an object to become more like another but in general she thought in terms of positive changes – i.e. what it needed to do to become more like the target, rather than what it needed to stop doing in order to be less like the source. Along with which was the fact that animation, as a feature, was totally new to her. She tried to think not so much of calmness and stillness as just a total absence. A brush was not being still or calm as that implied something that could move but, at that moment, was at peace. A brush was not at peace. It was not at anything. It just was.
“Capillius,” she cast again. The brush still had a rather grim, twisted face but it had stopped moving. She breathed a sigh of relief.
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Henny B-F-R
Well, it's better than if a lorry hit it...
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Henny B-F-R
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Cepheus Princeton, Crotalus
October 03, 2012 6:19 PM
Trying not to kill something. by Cepheus Princeton, Crotalus
There were two reasons why Cepheus did not enjoy Transfiguration: the first was because he was only competent in the subject and sometimes wasn't able to completely transfigure an object before the class was over. The second was because his tutor had once threatened to transfigure him into a rodent after Mael, his trouble-making French cousin, had anonymously played a nasty prank on the poor tutor. Once Father had found out who had done the prank, Mael had been sent back to his immediate family in France before one could say, "wizard wheezes." Since then, Cepheus had a bit of a grudge against all Transfiguration professors in general, though it wasn't their fault his Transfiguration tutor had been horrendous.Cepheus also had a little thing with turning live things into inanimate objects. He had never seen it actually done in his house before since there was no reason to, but he knew it went on. He couldn't ever imagine turning something living into a lifeless object, like his beloved Monty or his crup back home. He wasn't materialistic enough to change his pets into anything other than what they already were.
When Professor Skies showed an example of inanimate to animate objects, Cepheus visibly cringed. It looked so unnatural for that poor hedgehog to be cut in half in that way. He couldn't believe that the hedgehog could feel absolutely nothing. Cepheus wasn't very sympathetic to animals besides the ones at his manor in Surrey, but he certainly did feel bad for these animals who lived just to be transfigured. Sure, it was their life here and their purpose, but was it really all that necessary? He just needed to suck it up and live with it, he decided, trying not to imagine blood gushing out a hedgehog with a half-finished hedgehog-hairbrush.
Ceph raised his hand and the professor levitated a hedgehog over to him. It was a strange creature, but then again most creatures were strange. He took a moment to stare at it, wondering if it was safe to pet at all or if its quills would poke him. Perhaps if the creature hurt him, Cepheus would be less inclined to feel bad. He couldn't bring himself to try it, instead waving his wand the way the professor had showed them and saying, "Capillius."
He had pointed his wand to the front half of the hedgehog, and his heart leapt in his chest when he watched only a bit of the hedgehog change. His blue eyes widened, his heart hammering away as the hedgehog's little back legs scurried, pushing the front bit that had turned into something of a hairbrush into the fences. "Capillius! Capillius!" he exclaimed, trying to concentrate on the spell and not freak out at the same time. Cepheus succeeded in turning the front half of the former hedgehog into something that looked more like a hairbrush, but the back part was still struggling though the legs had come together. It was horrifying.
"Oh my Merlin, I think it's going to die because of me," he gasped, not so quietly that the person next to him didn't hear. He didn't even care. If they could save this poor creature's life, he would be thankful. "Capillius," he said again, calming himself down just a little with the hope that the hedgehog would be put out of its misery. The back part of the hedgehog went stiffer than before, slowly looking more like a hairbrush handle now. He collapsed in his seat, eyes still wide. "Merlin, I don't like this."
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Cepheus Princeton, Crotalus
Trying not to kill something.
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Cepheus Princeton, Crotalus
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5
Michael Grosvenor
October 14, 2012 5:21 PM
Seem to be doing ok by Michael Grosvenor
Michael hadn't exactly enjoyed his first exposure to animate transfiguration the year before. However, this had been more due to the fact that he couldn't see the point of the lesson and because he'd ended up with Mellie holding his Balladillo still and had been petrified of hitting her fingers instead of the target. Professor Skies seemed to be leading them through in a fairly methodical manner but he still wasn't entirely sure why he would ever want to use these skills. If he couldn't find his hairbrush, he was unlikely to have a hedgehog to hand instead. Even if he did, he would probably just not bother brushing his hair. It wasn't like it would show that much. As for changing a hairbrush into a hedgehog.... unless he was trying to wind up his sister, which he didn't really do, then he couldn't see the need. Maybe it was less the specific examples and more the general ability that they needed but he couldn't think of many situations where changing one thing into another was the easier option than just getting whatever it was. Nonetheless, he was required to do this until he was at least a fifth year. He would possibly continue it on afterwards unless he'd definitely figured out what he wanted to do and knew it didn't involve transfiguration. It seemed to be one of those core subjects that wizards thought were essential.He raised his hand for a hedgehog. He had made some progress with the football to armadillo assignment last year but he hadn't aced it. He was definitely a start simple and work your way up kind of guy. He watched the little hedgehog wiffle its nose at him and tried to do the visualising thing that Professor Skies had mentioned. A hedgehog and a brush looked kind of the same. That seemed to be pretty much it.
“Capillius,” he cast. A yet of light from his wand shot out and hit the hedgehog. He examined it for any differences but the net result was that the animal just seemed a bit pissed off. He was preparing to cast again when the guy next to him started to go a bit mental. Michael watched as the guy had a full on freak out, convinced he was killing his project.
“She said it wouldn't hurt it...” he commented, once the other guy had stopped frantically waving his wand and had sat back down. His tone was half way between reminding the boy and expressing doubt over what the professor had told them.
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Michael Grosvenor
Seem to be doing ok
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Michael Grosvenor
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Arabella Brockert, Pecari
October 16, 2012 5:45 PM
I wonder which this qualifies as. by Arabella Brockert, Pecari
Even though Arabella was a Brockert, she wasn't quite sure if she was ready for animate transfiguration. She was only a third year. That was the problem with having them in with the fifth years, there was such a wide range of skills, even more so than in an individual year group. She would probably put herself on par with a fourth year of average ability. Only in Transfig though. Well, the Pecari supposed she was also alright at Defense and pretty much most things that used a wand.It was just theory and essays that Arabella didn't like. Not so much that she was honestly stupid, she was just not interested . She didn't have the patience for it and she often wanted to get up and move around. Whenever she was working on an essay, her mind would wander and she would end up looking for something more interesting to do. Which was almost anything. Arabella tended to end up procrastinating and doing everything the night before.
And there was never the satisfaction of being done with things. Especially in Charms where there was just another essay the next week. They never got a break. It was like being Amity. It was why Arabella wasn't all that impressed with Professor Olivers. Her teaching style was incompatible with the third year's learning style. Her essays never came back with very good grades.
She wasn't too worried about things though. Her wandwork, especially Transfiguration was excellent, enough to bring her overall grades up. Besides, it wasn't like Arabella needed to be a top student. She wasn't going to have a career or go to college or anything. She didn't have to compete with anyone. All she needed to do was 'be a lady' and get betrothed-and being a Brockert was probably enough to help significantly with the latter.
The Pecari sighed with relief when Professor Skies didn't go too far into the theory. Honestly, she didn't care how magic worked, it was more important to be able to actually do it. That was what made one a witch or wizard. Any Muggle could grasp a theory-well, if they were allowed to know about magic, that was. Of course, then they'd just be learning about something that they could never do. It was really best for them to be kept ignorant of magical people in general. For their own good, knowing that there was something that made life better that one didn't have had to be infuriating.
The professor levitated a hedgehog to Arabella along with the rest of the class. Cute little thing really, much more so than a hairbrush and quite honestly, she'd rather play with it than change it into something else. Still, that was the assignment, and well, the third year didn't want to be like Carrie who refused to do things that she didn't want to do. She wanted to show that she was as little like her cousin as possible.
Arabella took her wand and did the required motion,"Capillus", resulting in a brush shaped...furry thing with hedgehog quills rather than bristles, eyes, and feet on its left side. She couldn't help but laugh a little at her creation. It wasn't in pain, so it was okay to be amused. She turned to the person next to her and asked. "So, what have you made so far?" Arabella was eager to see what others had made.
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Arabella Brockert, Pecari
I wonder which this qualifies as.
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Arabella Brockert, Pecari
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Evan Brockert, Aladren
October 16, 2012 9:02 PM
I wouldn't mind that happening in this case. by Evan Brockert, Aladren
Evan was looking forward to Transfiguration this year. He'd liked the previous professor fine-she'd been unusual-but Professor Skies had been Marshall's professor and he'd spoken well of her. Plus, classes should be getting more interesting this year like with all the other classes, now that they were moving past the basics. Perhaps, it would hold Evan's attention more if he was focused on something more challenging. Not that he was usually bored in class, but he just had this tendency to let his mind wander. He would see something and just wonder how to use it in one of his art projects.Professor Skies began her lecture and instantly, the Aladren was not at all disappointed. Granted, he had mixed feelings about Transfiguration in general, especially animate transfigurations. It felt like one wasn't respecting something being what it was and Evan didn't like that at all. Of course, on the other hand, he loved creating which was what art was all about. Transfiguration was creating as well, making something out of something else. It wasn't taking away something's status, just changing it to something that was just as good. When one turned a beetle into a button, it changed from a living breathing creature into something that was still useful. Not only did buttons fasten shirts, but Evan had used them quite often in various works of art.
The intriguing part though, was that when an animal was changed into something else, and it wasn't a complete change, that the part that had changed, continued to exist elsewhere. The question was where. It was something Evan really wanted to know and would either look up or ask Professor Skies later. He envisioned a world where the exact opposite of whatever he created continued to exist. Did that mean there was some sort of parallel dimension where everyone and everything was opposite of this one? Was there another Evan there? An Evan that wasn't this Evan in any way?
He wasn't sure if that was an awful thought or an interesting one. The third year couldn't imagine being anyone other than who he was and wouldn't want to. On the other hand, that The Opposite Evan From Another Dimension would be himself too. That Evan wouldn't really be the same person as he was, even though he had the same name and face.
His thoughts were brought to a standstill, though, when he heard the word hedgehogs . The Aladren could deal with just about any animal, with transfiguring any animal, aside from those with sharp quills. Evan's greatest fear was porcupines and as far as he was concerned, hedgehogs were no better. It was an odd fear, but what about him wasn't odd? He liked that quality about himself, but that didn't make prickly things any easier to deal with.
The hedgehogs were handed out, and Evan heard Henny next to him say “The sooner you're a hairbrush, the better,” .
"I agree wholeheartedly with that sentiment." He said to the other Aladren, as he drew his wand, imagining one of the many many hairbrushes he'd seen his sisters use over the years. The ones he'd occasionally tried to appropriate for other purposes. Evan gazed down at the creature with some trepidation. Okay, he was a Brockert and he could do this. Plus, he very much had the deep desire for this thing not to be a prickly little hedgehog any longer and that would help. "Capillus".
The important part, the part Evan wanted to happen most of all, the part that he'd been primarily focused on happened and the hedgehog's quills turned to a hairbrushes bristles. He'd also somehow managed to make the creature's nose and eyes disappear. "Well, it's a drastic improvement anyway." He said to Henny.
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Evan Brockert, Aladren
I wouldn't mind that happening in this case.
212
Evan Brockert, Aladren
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5
Russell Layne, Aladren
October 18, 2012 5:42 PM
Always better to be pleasantly surprised. by Russell Layne, Aladren
The first few days back always, it seemed, brought changes with them now that they were all getting older. So far, by and large, it wasn’t a phenomenon Russell enjoyed as much anymore as he had when it started and the big change had been that they had moved into a new, more challenging set of classes. Now, it seemed that things were just getting knottier for the lot of them by the year, and more and more it was in ways which threatened to upset the delicate balance which allowed a group of strong, ambitious personalities to peacefully cohabitate while they worked to get through school and get on with their ambitions without getting institutionalized or imprisoned. Last year, after all, the big splash had been Josh’s arrival in the dorm, and all the issues with adjusting that had caused for everyone, and this year, there were two big changes: first, Russell had become prefect, and then he had found out that Arnold was engaged to Fae Sinclair, though he thought the rest of the group had already known all about that, making it a surprise only for him.In a way, he found that situation less weird than Preston starting to date Sara last year – rich people just did what Arnold and Fae’s parents had, where Preston had just decided to go be weird with an older girl on his own account – but he was hardly bursting to congratulate them, because for him, it couldn’t have happened at a worse time. Arnold had always been the one Russell had considered least part of the rich boys’ clique, the one who was least likely to see Russell as an obstacle to himself, and now he was marrying Preston’s girlfriend’s best friend. He was tied more firmly to the group now, which, in Russell’s opinion, made it much less likely than the socially odd-roommate-out had a shot at Head Boy and much more likely that he could potentially get run over in some way.
There wasn’t much he could do about it but hope that Alicia became prefect in two years or, failing that, that he was wrong and that no one was even going to attempt anything political until they were all out of school, but when he noticed he was sitting next to Fae, it made him think of it. He smiled at her briefly as he nodded in greeting and began taking notes on animate transfigurations, liking the new professor’s explanation of it. He was sure it got much more complicated than that, but he thought he was getting the gist, anyway, of what she was saying.
Even with that, he didn’t expect to have a very easy time turning a hairbrush into a hedgehog. He was okay at Transfiguration magic, not exceptional, and it took time and study for him to get a good grip on things and get them to do what he wanted, especially in the beginning of the year, when he hadn’t, thanks to his parents being strictly in favor of the letter of the law being followed in their house, had many chances to do magic for several months. Getting a plain hairbrush, he turned it over in his hand a few times, learning the look of it, and then placed it bristle-side up on the desk in front of him to help with imagining the hedgehog, with its spiny back.
“Erinaceinae,” he said, focusing on the mental image of one of the little animals on some of the other desks.
The back of the hairbrush bent upward, at first just in the center, then more into an even curve, and the front end extended into something like a nose-shape, but the handle was still clearly visible. Looking at it with interest, Russell’s best guess was that Professor Skies’ example had still had a handle, at first, and he’d somehow gotten that stuck in his head without even realizing it. He shook his head slightly, looking at it.
Just then, Fae spoke about her own example. “About the same, I guess,” he said, indicating his now very strange-looking hairbrush. “Looks like your luck was a little better, though,” he added cheerfully. “Good job.”
16
Russell Layne, Aladren
Always better to be pleasantly surprised.
183
Russell Layne, Aladren
0
5
Alicia Bauer, Aladren
October 18, 2012 8:11 PM
I want them both. by Alicia Bauer, Aladren
As she filed past her new Transfiguration teacher, Alicia was careful to return Professor Skies’ smile with the most winning version of her own before she went to find a seat near the front and get out her parchment and quill and wand for the class. The first two items, she left lying quietly on her desk, but the third she kept in her hands, balanced between her two sets of long fingers, which she used to turn it around and around as she waited for class to begin, despite knowing this was not very good manners.Twelve and a half inches long and made of walnut, it was nearly uniformly thin, only tapering to a point near one end and having only two bands of thicker handle-carving at the other before its rounded pommel. She treated it regularly, keeping it polished and checking it for any sign of damage even during the long, stifling summer months when she was not technically allowed to use it, and so it shone like new as she looked over it admiringly. Her wandmaker had applauded when it had first sent forth a long stream of gold and red sparks when she had lifted it from its box and swept it up over her head, saying that great things could be expected from the wielder of a walnut wand. She suspected, of course, that he said as much to everyone – she was a suspicious person, and it seemed like the best way to keep business in families – but she meant for it to be true in her case, and she had sometimes imagined that, over the past two fairly dull years, she had been able to feel her wand waiting along with her, waiting quietly for the day when they would be able to do some real magic and reach all that potential.
Transfiguration was one of the classes she had been looking forward to trying out Intermediate spells in the most, and she was finding it hard to hide her excitement as the roll was called and they got closer and closer to the actual class. When finally they did – the upside of the class structure was that having three years in let her work with the fifth years; the downside of the class structure was that having three years meant everything took forever to get through – she put her wand down almost at once, though she kept her left hand resting on it as her right took up her quill and began to copy down nearly every word that came out of Professor Skies’ mouth. She felt a sort of warm contentment as some of the theory of the transfiguration of the day came out, and she smiled again at the professor, this time much more sincerely.
The expression faded, though, into her customary ingratiating one when she heard that the third years were supposed to stick with the third year spell, and not attempt the fifth year one. The look she gave the back of the nearest fourth year head was not friendly. There were maybe three people in that year worth considering; why should they get a chance which was denied to her?
She pressed her lips together. Once she mastered the first spell – without resorting to making notes – she’d try the second, and that would be that. Professor Skies had said there was no harm done to anything through bungled attempts, so there was nothing to stop her even if she’d had an ethical objection, which she didn’t. Alicia would rather see most people – in other words, any people who were not herself, Thad, or Cepheus, and maybe Evan or Henny on a good day – in pain than small, cute animals, but it was easy enough to attain a level of dissociation with Transfiguration projects, and she didn’t expect to have any problems at all with those which were just Transfigured from an inanimate object and, as such, were not real.
For the meantime….
“Capillius,” she exclaimed, sweeping her wand as directed over the hedgehog which had been floated over to her.
There was a flash of light, and the hedgehog elongated strangely, its spiny back moving toward the front, over its head, while its legs bent backwards, flattening out, the front ones bending inward, as though to form the rounded wooden back of a hairbrush around the spines. Fascinated, Alicia bent forward to study it for a moment, her thick hair falling forward as she did; she reached up absently, impatiently, to brush it back. She bit her bottom lip, imagining the process which had just gone on, so much more vivid like this than it was when things just moved smoothly from form to form….
Then she sat back in her seat, impatient with herself, and performed the sweeping movement again – “Capillius!” – and though the prickly back did not move, the legs finished fusing together into the back and rudimentary handle of a hairbrush. She tapped it with a fingernail and made a face at the strange feeling, which was somewhere between flesh and wood.
“I’ve never felt anything like that before,” she remarked to her neighbor, her half-lidded dark eyes bright with the near success. It was not coming along at one swoop, as she should have liked, but Transfiguration was one of the things she could get away with practicing a little in her bedroom late at night at home, and she confidently expected to be in top form inside two weeks at the most, now that she didn’t have to whisper and make sure only to use spells she knew wouldn’t produce a bang or too bright of a flash of light, which might draw attention to her. By the end of class, she wanted to be able to get the hedgehog as far as it was now at one swoop; that was her goal for today. “This new professor – she’s throwing us right into it, isn’t she? I think I’m going to like her.”
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Alicia Bauer, Aladren
I want them both.
210
Alicia Bauer, Aladren
0
5
Theresa Carey, Pecari
October 19, 2012 11:36 AM
That might be a question for the philosophers by Theresa Carey, Pecari
If there was a class Theresa was nervous about, really nervous about, entering at the Intermediate level, it was the Transfiguration class, and finding out they were getting a new professor didn’t help. It wasn’t that she had anything against Professor Skies – she didn’t know her – or that she had been that overwhelmingly fond of Professor Brockert; it was just that unfamiliarity with the person in charge did nothing to make the prospect of a transition more comfortable for her.It was, therefore, in her mind, completely natural that she walked into the Transfiguration class on the first day as though she owned the place, her head high and her expression – in her mind – one of confidence. To most outside observers, she would have looked more arrogant and disdainful than anything, but she wasn’t aware of that as she nodded to the professor and went to find a seat to start the class off in.
She did worry about using live things in Transfiguration about somehow ripping their guts out without meaning to, so even though theory wasn’t very easy for her, Theresa was glad to hear Professor Skies going into it and took notes over all that she said, even though she didn’t understand all of it completely. She could get Arthur to explain it to her on Saturday, if she didn’t get it when she thought about it later; her cousin seemed to only see Arnold’s homework and grades as a personal responsibility, but she had figured out early on that he did not see it as proper for any of them not to do well, either, and that though his brother was the only one who was probably going to be helped whether he wanted to be or not, Arthur would offer the same services to her and Jay – and she supposed now Henry and Anthony – if they asked. Her cousin enjoyed magical theory and such, and it was far less embarrassing to ask family for help than it was to go to professors or her roommates or other outsiders, so she saw this as a perfect arrangement.
A hedgehog arrived on her desk, and Theresa bit her lip as she pulled her gloves on and picked up her laurel wand, which felt less responsive through the gloves to her. “Capillius,” she tried, reminding herself not to say ‘caterpillar’ so firmly that she nearly did so because that was where her mind was, only catching herself just in time.
Predictably, the hedgehog didn’t seem impressed. It writhed for a moment, flattened out a little, but it didn’t seem to have gone completely inanimate, because it was still rocking back and forth as though trying to scurry away. “Ugh,” she added, and repeated the spell. It didn’t start to look more like a hairbrush, but did at least stop moving.
“Not much,” she admitted with a grimace when Arabella asked her what she’d made. “I really should have studied more over the summer.”
0
Theresa Carey, Pecari
That might be a question for the philosophers
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Theresa Carey, Pecari
0
5
Arthur Carey, Aladren
October 19, 2012 7:53 PM
Greed is a sin, you know by Arthur Carey, Aladren
A new professor in his CATS year was not, unless she represented a dramatic improvement over their last one, something Arthur necessarily saw as a good thing, but as he took a seat, he smiled politely and offered her a slight bow before sitting down. Whatever was or wasn’t best, this was what was, and she was going to be giving him his marks and possibly answering his questions, which meant it was best for him to be in her good graces, not in her bad.He watched with interest as she began the class, his quill in his hand to take notes as he heard what they were going to do and was pleased with it. It was an assignment he expected would be challenging for the first day back, and though he almost envied the third years, since a success for them as they started with animate Transfigurations would be more significant than one for him after two years of some familiarity with the topic, he wasn’t displeased with his assignment, either. Making a hedgehog – funny looking little creatures; for some reason, Arthur decided he liked them – out of a hairbrush was not unreasonable for a fifth year, but neither was it too easy, especially after the summer, so he was comfortable with the lesson.
He was also aware that his approval wasn’t required and might not even be welcome – some tutors, he had learned when he was small, had not liked it if he expressed that kind of thought – but he decided not to think about that. Arthur had found there were a lot of things where his opinion was not really necessary, but he’d also discovered that he couldn’t help having one, and that was the best solution he’d found to resolving that particular near-daily conflict.
He took out his wand, which he thought he might have finally grown into, and smiled thinly at the sight of the girl in the next seat – one of the third years, he recognized her; she was the one who was particular friends with Thaddeus, if he wasn’t mistaken, and who he’d seen talking with Russell before, too – toying with her wand. The wood was darker than his elm wand’s, but that could have just been the stain used; he thought the grain looked a bit different, but didn’t know enough about the matter to say for sure. He put his down to hear the rest of the instructions, memorizing the incantation he’d need to use to produce a hedgehog from a hairbrush and then, once the class was set to work, attempted it for the first time.
The handle of the brush bent inward, the back stretched and the bristles arched upward, but he did not get a complete shape from it. Before he could try again, the girl – Miss Bauer, he corrected himself; she was part of that family, though not, oddly enough, considering her looks, Mr. Bauer’s sister, but rather the Teppenpaw Seeker’s – spoke up, initiating conversation.
“I agree,” he said pleasantly, after a moment of surprise at a third year just striking up conversation with a fifth year. Aladrens were not known for being timid, after all; that wasn’t their House’s way. He had not seen himself as very inferior to the fifth years when he was a third year, if his memory was true, at least not by midterm. “A worthy addition to the faculty – as you are to the intermediate class, Miss Bauer,” he added politely. “You seem to be progressing well with your Transfiguration.” That, of course, was their House’s way, traditionally speaking, anyway. Of course there were exceptions, but not too many in general.
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Arthur Carey, Aladren
Greed is a sin, you know
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Arthur Carey, Aladren
0
5
Alicia
October 19, 2012 9:13 PM
Who says so? by Alicia
Alicia supposed it was a little bold, speaking to a fifth year, especially one who happened to be a Carey as well, but those in the old families who were not her friends – the ones who would never have to be spoken to like imbeciles by people with less intelligence than flobberworms, who’d never have to hold back a shudder as they were forced to pretend affection for the kind of filth they shouldn’t have had to look at, who didn’t have to suppress the urge to shatter every mirror they looked into, who had something, anything, outside of this building and who would gladly exile her back to that hell of having nothing for the rest of her life the moment she left this school if they found out what she was – just seemed to bring it out in her. She couldn’t help it. When she was around them, she had to prove she was as good as they were, if not better. She had to pretend to step up to their level.“Thank you,” she said, flushing with pleasure at the compliment and hoping to cover for it with a smile. “Though I already knew that,” she added.
After she said it, she was afraid that she might have gone just a little too far with that one, but feeling confident, she thought for a moment that she could ignore that. That was the great thing about school; no one could really do anything to her – except expose her, of course. Tell her friends. People from the East Coast didn’t worry her nearly as much as, say, the Bennetts or the Brockerts did, but it still was a risk. The feeling sure of herself faded away quickly.
“I’m guessing you know you’re doing well, too,” she said, lowering her gaze to her work again, then glancing up for a moment before trying her spell for the third time. The construct on her desk twisted further, then began to resemble a hairbrush more than it had. She looked at it with pleasure greater than that she’d felt at the compliment, sure that she would get it in order and still have plenty of class time left for practicing further, refining what she was doing. A moment’s reflection had let her realize she probably couldn’t get away with practicing the other spell in class, but she had more than one hairbrush back in her room in Aladren. One could be spared to the cause of at least trying the spell, even if she couldn't work it at all. Just the practice, and reading up on theory once she found it, would be good for her, and speed up the process of learning it. "Still, there's always room for improvement, isn't there?"
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Alicia
Who says so?
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Alicia
0
5
Arthur
October 20, 2012 4:21 PM
The goblins, for one by Arthur
Arthur raised an eyebrow when Miss Bauer claimed she had already known she was doing well. Definitely one of the Aladrens, he thought, who would have gone into Pecari if their House had not existed, one of the ones like his brother; he was more of a Crotalus type himself, he thought, but was fond enough of some of his otherwise-inclined classmates. Regardless of what they might have been, they were all Aladrens together, and better suited to that than they would have been to their second-best Houses.“I did,” he said when she softened enough to return the compliment. “But thank you anyway.”
He was not sure how to interpret the remark about improvement. “In theory,” he said, looking down at his work and attempting the spell again, “I don’t think so, no. I believe one can – hypothetically – eventually perform a spell perfectly, execute a Transfiguration just as planned. Then there would not be room for improvement.” His attempt at a hedgehog did not much improve, and he grimaced slightly as he prodded it with the tip of his wand, something which did not help it along, either. “However, we both still have plenty of room for it, I’ll agree with you about that.”
Jane had chastised him before – as tutors and his parents, and even a few times Arnold, had all done before her – about lacking patience. About not wanting to go through the process of things, but rather to jump straight to the favorable result. Arthur was honestly baffled by this. He did not think feeling that way made him any different from anyone else on the planet; he could wait, that was showing patience, in his book, and showing more patience than someone who didn’t mind doing so. Most people did want to get to the part where they had what they wanted, didn’t they? It seemed to him far more unnatural to enjoy struggling, though that meant acknowledging that his brother was a little bit abnormal, since he did enjoy it so very much on the Quidditch Pitch, at least generally speaking….
Still, he would get there someday, and that it was someday sooner than his classmates was a great consolation for him. He attempted the spell again and thought the nose on the half-formed thing he got twitched for a moment after it settled down. “Bit by bit, I suppose,” he said, more to himself than to her.
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Arthur
The goblins, for one
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Arthur
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Alicia
October 21, 2012 2:42 PM
Never mind them. by Alicia
"You're welcome," Alicia said, striving to remain civil this time, feeling that she'd gotten a bit of a pass with that and should take it. She almost liked to push the line, to make it creak and bend near its limit, but she knew it wasn't good for her, and she thought she usually knew where the line was, and that it was closer with some people than others. Arthur Carey was probably one of the people it was better not to push things with; he was from a certain kind of family, but beyond that, he was very intelligent. She had always felt an attraction to the fifth and sixth year group, with all that talent and all those connections, but she also knew they were perhaps the worst possible group in the school to get on the wrong side of.She had done what she could about that, establishing a friendly relationship with Russell, but she hadn't tried to go any further. For one thing, she knew the majority of them weren't likely to take her seriously, just as a third year who wasn't even on the Quidditch team, and for another...She knew, being best friends with Thad and friendly with Cepheus, that she was already walking a thin line, and the prospect of it getting so much thinner too quickly was one to make even her nervous. She didn't lack nerve, she would play the times and take any opportunities that presented themselves to her, but it made her nervous.
Sooner or later, of course, she knew she would have to get over her nervousness and make big moves, because she needed a patron. She would like nothing better than to have Thad's parents fill that role - she found the apparent relationship between them baffling, she couldn't quite believe in it, but the way it seemed was one of the things she couldn't help but envy even him - but she knew she would have to take at least an intermediate step up before she had any chance of that. Right now, her stepfather would do, but she didn't trust Jeremy to remain loyal to her if there were any hitches. She needed something more, but right now, she wasn't in a position to acquire anyone, so all she could really do was try not to alienate anyone potentially useful or dangerous.
"I don't believe you can ever do anything fully right," she said anyway when Arthur explained his theory, drawn to intellectual conversation however it came about. "Nothing's ever really perfect."
Taking the opposite position would have been fun anyway, but this time, it was true, true enough to bring a massive wave of bitterness in her, making her press her lips together for a moment before, her wand movement more forceful than was strictly necessary, trying the spell again and looking, at once angry and satisfied, at the hairbrush which rattled into existence before her. Poking it revealed it still wasn't hard enough, not really, but it looked entirely like a hairbrush, at least on this side. She glanced at Arthur's work and twisted her wand between her fingers again. She had to work more to manipulate her wand than most people, because hers had almost no bend to it at all. "Two more tries, and I'll be ready to try that," she added lightly, gesturing toward the fifth year's assignment.
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Alicia
Never mind them.
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Alicia
0
5
Arthur
October 21, 2012 10:07 PM
That doesn't sound wise to me by Arthur
Arthur did not, as a rule, put a great deal of thought into conversations with third years, generally making pleasant small talk while at least a small part of his mind was on something more interesting, and he was mildly surprised when Miss Bauer decided to contest his point about spellwork.“Certainly not for most people,” he said, still pleasantly. “But we must try to reach it, however we may.”
Deep down, Arthur wasn’t sure he believed what he was saying at all, but he had assumed the position now, anyway, and would argue it until the end. Revising his point in front of a third year was not really something he thought he wanted to do today, especially one he suspected might decide it was a brilliant excuse to try to badger him into a corner and then declare herself the victor. He did think he was right on the essentials, anyway – that there was an ideal state, it was just that only a very few people, if any people at all, could reach it. Perhaps it was not perfection, but it was the best that could be done, so he thought it was a bit academic to argue whether or not there was a difference….
He was not at all surprised to realize he was now curious about whether or not there was a difference. Try as he would, Arthur could never quite manage to stick to purely practical concerns. He had a terrible weakness for theater and abstraction, it was going to be the death of him someday, he was sure, and so on and so forth. It was like impatience, in that it was something he had simply accepted about himself and the universe and did not see as changeable; some things simply weren’t. By and large, people tended to stay themselves, it was only that some of them eventually became more so, to good or terrible effect, depending on which traits were magnified. Or at least, they did if he was right, and he was in the habit of thinking that he was, in fact, right.
However, whether perfection was possible or not, Arthur’s practical side did know that reaching it wasn’t his top priority. He didn’t feel the real need, deep and intrinsic and inescapable, to be perfect, without flaws of any kind. He just felt the need to be better than everyone else.
He laughed when Miss Bauer asserted that she was nearly ready to skip fourth year altogether and jump straight into his work. “I wish you luck,” he said, trying to suppress the amusement in his voice. He didn’t, after all, think it was impossible that she should do exactly what she said she was going to do – Jane had done as much, as a third year, studying with Edmond – even if he did think it was more than a little unlikely. “This assignment is an ambitious undertaking even for many of us in the year it was assigned to.”
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Arthur
That doesn't sound wise to me
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Arthur
0
5
Alicia
October 23, 2012 2:57 PM
I laugh in the face of danger! Hahahahaha! by Alicia
Perfection was, of course, something Alicia wanted, if there was such a thing, it was never going to happen for her. Even if everything went right – if her father and his entire family just disappeared, if she never had to see her mother again, if every trace of her real background were wiped off the face of the earth and she was able to replace it with a story everyone would believe - she would still know the truth, and that would keep things from being perfect.She had seen Anne in a play*, once, during midterm of her first year; a Muggle production, but she had smiled anyway, because she liked her tutor, and then an image from it had all but seized her by the throat. Anne had been playing a woman who talked her husband into killing and then gone mad, trying in her sleep to wash the blood off her hands every night. Alicia remembered that one moment as clearly as she did her routine this morning, because she knew how that woman had felt. She’d become a queen, risen as high as she could go, but she had never been able to make herself clean. Blood was permanent. It never went away as long as a person lived. A little luck would cover it up, but it would still be there, underneath. It wouldn’t go away.
Alicia fiddled with her wand again, the smooth wood beneath her fingers reminding her of how much greater her power was than that of any queen, ever, through the great long march of human history. I’m better than that, anyway, she assured herself. And there could be a way. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. Thus comforted, she returned her attention to her conversation.
“However we may,” she agreed, suppressing the thought that he didn’t need perfection because he had a family. It did not help to think like that. There was no point to thinking like that, when she could control it.
She could tell Arthur found her amusing, and her teeth clenched together for a moment before she forced her jaw to relax again. She could not break her teeth just because of a boy who underestimated her. That would not help anything. “I’m an ambitious person,” she said coolly instead, working the third year spell again, refusing to let up until she had a perfect hairbrush. She would have to start over as soon as she did, to get one faster, to get one better, but she didn’t think about that now. The trick, she had discovered, was to get through one thing at a time, then worry about what came after; when she tried anything else, that was when it became overwhelming, and she thought that she might drown.
OOC: The play Alicia alludes to is, as a matter of record, Shakespeare’s Macbeth, specifically Act V, Scene i. The post title is a quote from memory from Disney's Lion King, specifically, I think, from the beginning of the 'elephant graveyard' sequence.
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Alicia
I laugh in the face of danger! Hahahahaha!
210
Alicia
0
5
Arabella
October 24, 2012 4:51 PM
Perhaps by Arabella
Arabella smiled at her roommate. They weren't close, she was better friends with Alexandra who was Theresa's distant cousin. The Pecari couldn't really remember how distant the relation between the two was. It was enough to keep up with her own family tree and she felt she was lucky enough to remember how exactly she was related to Evan.Still, she felt she had more in common with Theresa than Jade or Waverly. The former was poor and played Quidditch (and got a little up herself about the latter which in turn got on Arabella's nerves) and the other girl was Muggleborn. She knew Waverly was into baking and had started a club for it but the redhead had never baked anything in her life. She would probably burn it if she did, or potentially start a fire, and she didn't exactly know the Flame Freeze Charm, which was apparently more appropriate for the Advanced group, as Ryan had learned it earlier in the year.
"It doesn't look too bad. At least it did something." When it came to Transfiguration, Arabella tried her best not to sound condescending. She had little patience with those who acted like they were better than her. In fact, she detested arrogance, because of Carrie. Of course, when people were so because of their family name, the Pecari generally tended not to notice. People didn't really act superior to her in that respect though she wouldn't expect someone like Theresa to defer to her either, Arabella perceived them as equals.
She wouldn't defer to anyone either. She wouldn't let them say they were better. Maybe some people were better students, but the third year didn't really care about that. She'd let them have it especially when the reason was lack of interest or patience on Arabella's part and not stupidity. If she could focus, rather than getting bored, she'd probably do quite well, though she was no genius by any means. The Pecari just had a difficult time paying attention to things that didn't interest her.
"I suppose we should both try again." Arabella suggested. She really did like her creation, but that wasn't the assignment and she did her work, even if she didn't necessarily enjoy it and put it off until the last minute. "Capillus" . This time the fur disappeared,replaced with a hedgehog colored hard texture and it-thankfully-lost its two left feet. A portion of the quills now appeared to be hair brush bristles as well. "Well, it's an improvement anyway."
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Arabella
Perhaps
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Arabella
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Arthur
October 25, 2012 10:18 PM
*Backs away slowly* by Arthur
Arthur was not precisely surprised when Miss Bauer didn’t bother to deny being an ambitious person, but her claiming the label so freely was at least mildly interesting to him. Ambition, after all, was not precisely a quality which was smiled on in all quarters; it did imply a certain lack of contentment with the place you had been born to, and in many cases a desire to take someone else’s. Not something, he thought dryly, that many people would approve of, particularly those who already had places.His family…He thought they held an utterly ridiculous stance on the matter. Officially, they disapproved of it, saying that everyone had a place and should be in their place, but at the same time, they had all heard, from the time they were very small children, about how they should be their best, which to him couldn’t help but imply that some ambition was expected. No one, after all, started off at their best; it was something to work toward, something to climb up to, and as far as he could tell, there was no one in the family who disagreed with him about that. So they were to be ambitious and unambitious, content in their place and looking to better themselves…The only conclusion he could come to was that the family didn’t really know what it wanted, and so it was up to them to decide for themselves and hope they did so in such a way that pleased their immediate superiors and didn’t anger the rest of society too much.
It was not, he thought, a very efficient way to run so large an organization as the Carey family, and it was probably part of why they were not more successful than they were. That was a shame, he thought, but maybe it was inevitable, as divided as they were. Everyone had his own scheme; Great-Great-Grandfather, like his twin brother before him, gave them a public face, and kept them together well enough to keep the other families from exploiting the divisions, but they were still closer to five families than one, each aiming always to become first among them.
“Well, I wish you luck with that, too,” he said cordially, attempting his own transfiguration again and getting it animated, even if its footsteps on the desk were curiously wooden-sounding and its bristles still looked more like those of a hairbrush than anything.
Everything, after all, came along eventually; it was just a matter of making himself persist, instead of giving into frustration. He knew this, and was proud to think that he had gotten better at persisting over time, and at knowing when and when not to wait. He hoped he was right about that, anyway.
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Arthur
*Backs away slowly*
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Arthur
0
5
Theresa
October 25, 2012 10:20 PM
Do you know a philosopher we could ask? by Theresa
“That is better than nothing,” Theresa agreed when Arabella said that at least her hedgehog had done something. She tried not to envy her roommate for, she knew, being better at the subject in general than she was, and so sure to finish this assignment before she did. It wasn’t productive, after all, and it was her own fault for not working harder. What anyone else could do, she had always been taught, she could almost surely do if she would just put in the effort, because just being who she was meant a certain baseline of talent was there, if only she would develop it.Though admittedly, her poor brother did pose a challenge to that theory, she knew. Henry was very demonstrably a wizard – he went nowhere without his wand on his person anymore, at least as far as she could tell, and plus there had been strange accidents all the time since his Accident – but the things that proved it were also the ones that made her think he wasn’t going to be as good a wizard as the rest of them. He and Anthony had played around at simple spells before school, as everyone did, and while her cousin had shown a knack for charms, her brother had spent half his time not even able to shoot sparks at things and the other half blowing them up. She prayed he was going to do better here at school, but she didn’t really expect it. It was really distressing, not to mention embarrassing; she didn’t want to be known as the sister of ‘that near-Squib Carey boy’ or anything like that on top of not wanting Henry himself to be known as that.
Overall, though, her family was, she knew, more magically gifted than most people, which meant she could do anything she wanted to work hard enough to do. It was a failing of hers that she did not, one she was trying to correct, but – like with so many things – didn’t always manage to.
“I agree,” she said, and tried again as well.
Arabella’s attempt went much better than hers, which only flattened out a little and was still very definitely and very visibly all organic. “Yes,” she said, not too happily, when Arabella called her own work an improvement. “I really am going to have to study. Hit me if I look at anything else at night until I get this right.” This was, after all, her hardest class, which meant she could most likely let the others go longer, at least until she was back up to scratch in Transfiguration. Surely she would have it under control by the weekend, when she could get Arthur to go over it with her and then send her back into class next week with the situation…under control, so she wasn’t embarrassed like this again. Arabella had always been better at Transfiguration than she was, but not this much better. This wasn’t something she could really tolerate.
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Theresa
Do you know a philosopher we could ask?
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Theresa
0
5
Alicia
October 26, 2012 11:00 AM
*Has no idea why you'd want to do that....* by Alicia
Alicia could not tell if Arthur Carey was mocking her, with his wish of luck for her ambitions, but she bowed her head anyway. Her heavy hair fell forward on the right side, the ends falling over her shoulder. “Thank you,” she said simply, and turned her attention back to her Transfiguration.Whether he was mocking her or not, he didn’t really mean it. Of that, Alicia was absolutely sure. Even not knowing what she was, and the implications that came with her becoming someone, she didn’t think he could. He was from a family which could be spoken of as a unit – “the Careys” – and he had no personal reason to want to see her succeed, no ties to or affection for her, and that was a combination which equaled him wanting her to stay where she was or else sink below that place.
She didn’t even resent it, much; she was, she thought, fully in support of those who didn’t deserve what they had – the stupid ones who had just been born to the right people, the lazy ones who took it all for granted, the arrogant ones who laughed at her for even trying, all of those types and all of their fellows – having it taken away from them, but not for large-scale social climbing, and would certainly want to stomp on anything that threatened such a place as she did have or the one she hoped to obtain. She understood. She just…didn’t care.
She wasn’t like the others – the others with her unfortunate birth. She knew that, knew it in her bones. Through something – luck, or fate, or a random quirk of genetics, she didn’t know, and didn’t care about that, much, either – she was better than them, smarter, more talented, but none of that mattered if anyone ever found out she was one of them. All anyone would ever remember about her was that she’d been descended from Muggles, had been a credit to her kind, but still not quite a person, not really. Just a mixed-blood. Not a threat, certainly. A trained dog. Look how clever she is.
She didn’t like the purebloods any better than she liked her own kind, as a general rule, since that they were whole angered her and the fixation on boys was, in her opinion, utterly stupid and ridiculous, but they had the power, which meant being accepted by them was the way clear to not being remembered that way. People could compliment her without even an unspoken but; she could be spoken to with respect, because people would think she deserved it completely, rather than in half-measures. At least, anyone who mattered would; her cousin Sam would disagree, she was sure, but who was he? Oh, yes. A half-blood and a bastard to boot. He couldn’t even do as well as his blood entitled him to because no one could be really sure of it, since his father had never even acknowledged him, never mind gone so far as to marry Aunt Hannah.
She began performing the spell again, but without any particular conviction for a try or two, just enjoying the sweeping wand movement, the flashes of light that accompanied each word. Sweeping wand movements were among her favorites, if having preferences in that even worked; certainly, she found it easier than swishes, and anything circular drove her crazy since she could never make a perfect circle.
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*Has no idea why you'd want to do that....*
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